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AN   INTRODUCTION 


TO  THE 


PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 


BV 


PHILIP   HUDSON    CHURCHMAN,  A.M. 

FoBMBRLY  Instructor  in  Princeton  Univkrsity  and  in 
THE  U.  S.  Naval  Academy,  Annapolis 


CAMBRIDGE,   MASSACHUSETTS 

i9or> 


AN   INTRODUCTION 


TO 


THE  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 


AN  INTRODUCTION 


TO  THE 


PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 


BY 


PHILIP   HUDSON    CHURCHMAN,  A.M. 

FoEMBRLT  Instructor  in  Princeton  University  and  in 
THB  U.  S.  Naval  Academy,  Annapolis 


CAMBRIDGE,   MASSACHUSETTS 

1906 


ok 


Copyright,  1906, 
By  Philip  H.  Churchman. 


THE   UNIVERSITY  PRESS,    CAMBRIDGE,  U.  8.  A. 


PREFATORY   NOTE 

There  is  surely  no  need  to  convince  intelligent  American 
teachers  of  the  deplorable  lack  of  ability  to  pronounce  the 
French  language  in  our  school  and  college  classes.  But, 
when  the  defects  of  an  old  method  have  become  apparent, 
and  a  scientific  but  practical  system  stands  ready  to  take  its 
place,  it  is  certainly  time  to  expect  a  change  for  the  better. 
According  to  the  old  plan  of  teaching  pronunciation,  the 
student  first  learned  what  the  French  sounds  are  "  like 
in  English,"  and  with  these  half-truths  in  mind  was  sent 
floundering  through  chance  selections  of  the  text  nearest 
at  hand  ;  system,  scientific  analysis,  and  prepared  exercises 
were  completely  lacking.  The  new  method,  though  scien- 
tific, can  be  made  eminently  practical,  and  need  never  be 
technical.  It  aims  to  present  a  rational  explanation  of  the 
phenomena  of  phonetics  ("the  science  of  articulate  sound  "), 
rules  for  the  proper  production  of  the  sounds  of  the  lan- 
guage, and  graded  exercises  to  train  the  vocal  organs. 
Surely  it  would  seem  wiser  to  spend  the  early  months  of 
one's  work  in  the  language  learning  these  things  and 
repeating  carefully  prepared  exercises,  than  in  blundering 
through  pages  of  unpronounceable  French. 

This  book  is  the  result  of  study  and  observation  in 
France,  and  of  research  among  the  most  recent  scholarly 
works  on  the  subject  of  practical  phonetics,  —  a  science  of 


202890 


vi  PREFATORY  NOTE 

whose  unique  value  in  the  study  of  pronunciation  I  have 
personal  knowledge.  In  preparing  my  work  I  have  freely 
used  Franz  Beyer's  "  Franzosische  Phonetik  fur  Lehrer  und 
Studierende,"  second  revised  edition,  Cothen,  1897,  Passy's 
"Les  Sons  du  Fran9ais,"  Paris,  1899,  and  the  "Precis  de 
Prononciation  Frangaise,"  by  Rousselot  and  Laclotte,  Paris, 
1903 ;  and  I  have  found  many  valuable  rules  for  quality  in 
Prof.  Louis  Bevier's  "French  Grammar,"  Henry  Holt  and 
Co.,  New  York,  1897.  Other  non-original  sources  are  the 
lectures  of  Professor  Colardeau,  of  Grenoble  University, 
France,  and  the  lectures  and  private  lessons  of  M.  Adolphe 
Ziind-Burguet  of  Paris.  My  guide  in  debatable  pronun- 
ciations has  been,  in  most  cases,  the  "Dictionnaire  Pho- 
n^tique  de  la  Langue  Fran^aise,"  by  H.  Michaelis  and 
P.  Passy  (Hannover,  Berlin,  1897) ;  this  is  cited  as  the 
"  Dict.-phon."  I  must,  furthermore,  cheerfully  acknowledge 
my  indebtedness,  for  a  suggestion  or  two,  to  publications 
like  my  own  by  Prof  John  E.  Matzke  ("A  Primer  of  French 
Pronunciation,"  Henry  Holt,  New  York)  and  M.  Burguet 
("M^thode  Pratique,  Physiologique  et  Compar^e  de  Pro- 
nonciation Frangaise,"  Paris,  Soudier,  1902). 

The  aim  of  this  "  Introduction  "  is  purely  practical.  It 
is  neither  a  contribution  to  the  study  of  phonetics,  nor  an 
exhaustive  treatise  on  shades  of  pronunciation.  It  does 
not  contain  a  word  about  "  pitch,"  gives  but  scant  attention 
to  "length,"  and  intentionally  omits  a  few  of  the  most 
complicated  rules  for  quality.  All  this  is  true,  because  my 
little  book  is  meant  to  serve  a  practical  purpose  in  an 
elementary  way,  and  because  I  believe  that,  for  the  purpose 
of  mastering  the  finer  points,  elaborate  rules  are  too  often 
but  a  clumsy  substitute  for  unconscious  imitation. 


PREFATORY  NOTE  vii 

In  order  to  combine  the  virtues  of  the  beginner's  manual 
with  those  of  a  more  advanced  book  of  reference,  I  have 
printed  in  ordinary  large  t3rpe  the  essentials  that  every 
student  of  French  should  know,  and  have  explained  finer 
points  in  small  print. 

It  is  a  pleasure  to  mention  the  valuable  criticism  and 
advice  of  my  friends  Dr.  Edwin  S.  Lewis  and  Dr.  Frank  L. 
Critchlow,  of  Princeton,  and  Mr.  F.  W.  Morrison  of  the 
U.  S.  Naval  Academy,  Annapolis. 

P.  H.  a 

Cambridge,  Mass. 

February,  1906. 


HOW   TO   USE   THIS   BOOK 

It  is  not  expected  that  even  the  outlines  of  a  book  that 
contains  so  many  details  as  this  one  can  be  grasped  in  a 
few  hasty  lessons  at  the  beginning  of  a  course.  On  the 
contrary,  a  slow  method  of  gradual  absorption  is  preferable. 
Short  lessons  should  be  assigned  along  with  the  other  work 
in  grammar  and  translation  every  day  during  the  first 
months  of  the  course.  Never  should  more  than  four  new 
sounds  be  assigned  at  a  time  (it  would  be  better  if  but  one 
or  two  new  ones  should  be  included  in  each  lesson),  and 
the  matter  in  fine  print  should  not  receive  much  attention 
at  first ;  in  this  way  a  thorough  knowledge  of  the  facts  and 
perfect  ability  to  pronounce  the  sounds  of  the  lesson  may 
be  exacted.  Having  gone  through  the  book  once  in  this 
manner  as  far  as  the  sentence  exercises,  a  review  may  profit- 
ably be  begun  at  this  point,  these  sentences  being  taken  up 
with  the  other  matter  on  the  sound  to  which  they  belong. 
When  practical  perfection  is  attained  in  this  part  of  the 
work,  it  is  time  to  take  up  the  selections.  These  should  be 
repeated  until  the  students  have  them  thoroughly  in  hand, 
and  as  many  as  possible  should  be  learned  by  heart.  In 
the  scenes  firom  the  comedy,  the  parts  may  profitably  be 
taken  by  difterent  students.  Random  reading  should  not 
be  taken  up  until  all  the  material  in  this  book  has  been 
mastered ;  and  even  then,  teachers  really  interested  in 
pronunciation  would  do  well  to  assign  special  paragraphs 
of  reading  matter  as  pronunciation  exercises,  and  exact 
careful  preparation  of  them.  Writing  exercises  phoneti- 
cally, i.  e.,  with  all  silent  letters  omitted,  and  phonetic 
signs,  as  fast  as  they  are  learned,  substituted  for  the  usual 
spelling,  should  be  a  common  practice. 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 

Page 

Introduction 1 

1.  Method  of  Treating  the  Subject 1 

2.  Alphabet  and  Other  Signs  Used 3 

Some  Underlying  Principles 4 

1.  General  Remarks  on  the  Characteristics  of  French    .     .  4 

2.  The  Division  of  Words  into  Syllables 5 

3.  Tonic  Accent 6 

PART  I 

The  Vowel  Sounds 8 

Series  III 17 

1.  y 17 

2.  </) 18 

3.  CB 18 

4.  9 19 

Series  IV:  Nasal  Vowels  22 

1.  S 24 

2.  e 25 

3.  o 26 

4.  OB 26 

Quantity  of  Vowels 27 

PART  II 

The  Semivowels ,    ...  32 

1.  j 32         3.  q 33 

2.  w         33 

PART  III 

The  Consonants 35 

I.   The  Liquids 35 

1.  r 35         2.  1 38 


Series  I.  .     .     . 

.     .     .       9 

1.  i       ... 

.     .     .       9 

2.  6       ... 

...     10 

3.  e      ... 

.     .     .     11 

4.  a      ... 

.     .     .     13 

Series  II.      .     . 

.     .     .     13 

1.  a      ... 

.     .     .     13 

2.  0      ... 

.     .     .     15 

3.  o      ... 

.     .     .     15 

4.  u      ... 

.     .     .     16 

xil  TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 

Page 

II.  The  Spirants 39 

A.  Voiceless  Spirants o     .     .  40 

1.  f 40        3.  / 42 

2.  s 40 

B.  Voiced  Spirants 42 

1.  V 42         3.    5     •••••.  44 

2.  z 43 

III.  The  Stop  Consonants,  or  Occlusives 45 

A.  The  Voiceless  Stops 45 

1.  p 45         3.  k 47 

2.  t 46 

B.  The  Voiced  Stops 48 

1.  b 48         3.  g 49 

2.  d 49 

IV.  The  Nasal  Consonants 50 

1.  m 50        3.  ji 52 

2.  n 51 

V.    H 52 

VI.    Double  Consonants 53 

PART  IV 

Liaison 56 

A.  Obligatory  Liaisons 56 

B.  Liaisons  to  be  Avoided .  57 

C.  Finals  that  Have  a  Peculiar  Value  in  Liaison      ...  57 

PART  V 

Exercises 59 

I.    Sentences  on  Each  Sound 59 

II.    Selections  of  Prose  and  Poetry 66 

1.  Louis  XIV  et  le  Courtisan 66 

2.  Extract  from  Bossuet's  Sermon  on  "Ambition  "     .  67 

3.  Tristesse 67 

4.  Hernani,  Act  I,  Scene  4 68 

5.  Le  Voyage  de  M.  Perrlchon,  Act  III,  Scene  8    .     .  70 


AN  INTRODUCTION^  TO 
THE  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

INTRODUCTION 

1.  Method  of  Treating  the  Subject.  For  those  who  learn 
a  foreign  language  through  the  ear  alone,  and  who  attach 
no  importance  to  reading,  correct  imitation  of  the  sounds 
heard  is  the  one  thing  essential  to  the  acquisition  of  a  good 
pronunciation.  But  it  would  be  difficult,  —  even  were  such 
a  procedure  intelligent,  —  to  construct  a  serious  method  of 
teaching  a  new  language,  to  any  but  the  youngest  children, 
without  a  pretty  generous  use  of  the  printed  page  as  a 
medium  of  instruction.  The  average  American  student, 
therefore,  who  comes  continually  into  contact  with  printed 
words,  has  two  distinct  problems  before  him  in  learning  to 
pronounce  French  :  in  the  first  place  he  must  know  how  to 
produce  the  sounds  of  the  language,  and  secondly  he  will 
need  to  familiarize  himself  with  the  letters  that  represent 
the  respective  sounds  on  the  printed  page ;  one  attainment 
is  of  little  use  without  the  other.  For  instance,  although 
he  may  be  able  to  pronounce  with  the  greatest  accuracy 
some  such  sound  as  "  open  ^,"  yet  printed  words  containing 
that  sound  mean  nothing  to  him  until  he  has  learned  what 
letters  stand  for  the  sound  in  print  {e,  ^,  ei^  ai^  etc.) ;  and, 
inversely,  it  is  of  no  possible  use  to  understand  the  orthog- 
raphy of  a  language  without  being  able  to  produce  its 
sounds.  But  to  those  who  have  mastered  all  the  sounds 
of  a  language  and  learned  what  are  their  printed  repre- 
sentatives, reading  presents  no  further  difficulties.  The 
purpose  of  this  book  is  to  give  a  clear  presentation  of  these 
two  essentials  of  a  good  pronunciation,  —  mastery  of  the 
sounds,  and  the  relation  between  sound  and  print. 


2  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

There  are  three  ways  of  learning  how  to  make  the  sounds 
of  a  foreign  language  :  first,  imitation  of  those  who  speak 
it  correctly ;  secondly,  comparison  of  its  sounds  with  those 
of  our  mother  tongue ;  and,  thirdly,  a  study  of  the  work- 
ings of  our  vocal  organs.  Obviously  it  is  only  with  the 
second  and  third  of  these  methods  that  one  can  deal  in 
print;  but  the  gramophone  offers  an  excellent  substitute 
for  the  voice  of  the  native,  and  is  to  be  highly  recommended 
both  as  an  aid  to  teachers  who  are  not  quite  sure  of  their 
accent  and  to  students  in  need  of  a  perfect  model  to  imitate 
during  the  hours  of  preparation.  A  complete  set  of  exer- 
cises recorded  on  the  gramophone  plates  by  some  one  with 
a  perfect  accent  will  afford  a  systematic  series  of  reliable 
models  that  may  be  repeated  at  will. 

In  treating,  one  by  one,  the  various  sounds  of  the  French 
language,  we  shall  first  give  physiological  directions  for 
making  each  sound,  also  its  nearest  neighbor  in  English. 
Next  will  follow  a  study  of  the  letters  that  represent  it. 
After  that  will  be  given,  for  careful  and  repeated  practice, 
graded  exercises,  ending  with  lists  of  words  in  which,  in 
order  to  aid  the  beginner,  the  letters  that  stand  for  the 
sound  under  discussion  are  printed  in  heavy  type.  It  is 
advisable  that,  in  pronouncing  these  exercises,  the  student 
should  fix  his  attention  only  upon  the  sounds  that  he  has 
already  studied.  In  all  French  words,  absolutely  silent 
letters  are  printed  in  italics  (e.  g.,  temps) ;  "feminine  e "  is 
put  between  parentheses  when  it  has  not  the  full  pronun- 
ciation (e.  g.,  arbr(e)),  but  in  those  cases  where,  as  we  shall 
learn,  an  e  of  this  kind  "  is  weakened  after  voiced  conso- 
nants," this  weakened  sound  will  generally  have  to  be 
treated  as  if  it  did  not  exist. 

After  the  study  of  the  separate  sounds  there  are  some 
exercises  in  common  type.  These  consist  of  practice  sen- 
tences for  each  sound,  followed  by  selections  of  prose  and 


INTRODUCTION 


poetry  suitable  for  drill  in  pronunciation.  Patient  practice 
of  all  these  exercises  and  selections  is  recommended,  as  the 
vocal  organs  need  long  training  like  any  others. 

2.  Alphabet  and  Other  Signs  Used.  There  are  three 
accent-marks,  called  the  " acute "  {'),  the  " grave "  (^ ),  and 
the  "circumflex"  C^).  These  have  nothing  to  do  with  the 
tonic-accent,  or  voice-stress,  but  affect  the  quality  of  a 
vowel.^  The  cedilla  (9)  indicates  a  soft  c  (see  page  41,  (4)) 
before  a,  0,  and  u.  The  tr&ma  (••  )  is  used  to  separate  a 
digraph  ^  into  two  syllables  (e.  g.  ^air,  ambiguite),  and  to 
bring  out  an  otherwise  silent  u  in  the  ending  ~gue  (compare 
aigue  with  longue). 

For  the  sake  of  accuracy  and  clearness  we  shall  employ 
the  following  alphabet  of  the  "Association  Phondtique 
Internationale  "  in  referring  to  the  various  sounds  and  in 
indicating  the  exact  pronunciation  of  any  word  :  — 

TABLE   OF  PHONETIC   SIGNS 
(Each  sign  has  the  value  of  the  italicized  letter  or  letters 
in  the  word  next  to  which  it  stands.) 


a 

patte 

1 

lo. 

<}> 

Yoeu 

a 

pttte 
6e6e 

m 

ma 

ce 

\euT 

b 

n 

nonne 

a 

dan8 

k 

col  (gwand) 

0 

Y>eau  (pot) 

c 

\in 

d 

(^ans 

0 

poche 

0 

hon 

e 

alle 

P 

pas 

oe 

un 

E 

vets 

r 

rat 

3 

2/eux 

d 

me 

s 

ceux  (seul) 

■w 

oui 

f 

/oil 

t 

me 

q 

\ui 

ST 

gfater 

y 

.  \u 

/ 

chat 

h 

^ardi 

V 

vous 

ji 

iWgne 

i 

St 

z 

zhhre  (rose) 

: 

sign  of  length 

3 

^it  (iour) 

u 

vows 

1  Accents  are  occasionally  used,  however,  to  differentiate  words 
spelled  just  alike  but  having  different  meanings:  e.  g.  ou  (or)  and  oh 
(wJiere). 

2  A  digraph  is  a  single  sound  represented  by  two  letters  :  e.  g.,  at, 
OM,  ph. 


4  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

SOME  UNDERLYING  PRINCIPLES 

1.  General  Remarks  on  the  Characteristics  of  French. 
From  the  very  start  it  is  essential  to  renounce  English 
habits  of  speech.  In  English  the  vocal  organs  are  usually- 
relaxed,  and  their  changes  of  position  are  neither  rapid  nor 
vigorous ;  the  tongue  is  rarely  thrust  vigorously  forward ; 
the  lips  are  seldom  advanced,  even  when  rounded.  French, 
on  the  contrary,  is  always  energetic  and  forcible ;  the  vocal 
organs  are  tense,  and  their  movements  are  quick  and 
marked ;  it  is  distinctly  enunciated,  therefore,  even  when 
rapidly  spoken.  The  consonants  are  either  sharp  and  en- 
ergetic (^,  t,  k,  /),  or  vigorously  hummed  {m,  ?^,  6,  d,  v). 
In  pronouncing  the  vowels  extreme  positions  of  the  lips 
and  tongue  follow  each  other  in  rapid  succession ;  at  one 
moment  the  lips  are  far  forward  and  rounded,  as  in  vous; 
at  the  next,  the  corners  of  the  mouth  are  sharply  drawn 
back,  as  in  vie;  (note,  then,  the  sharp,  quick  change  in 
oui)  :  now  the  mouth  is  wide  open  (p^re,  ^me),  now  it  is 
nearly  closed  (vous,  vie).  The  acquisition  of  the  necessary 
energy  and  activity  —  new  and  strange  habits  of  speech  to 
the  Anglo-Saxon  —  will  demand  a  determined  effort  and 
constant  practice.  The  vocal  organs  must  be  trained  to  a 
strong,  active  articulation. 

Voice  Quality.  In  far  too  many  cases  an  otherwise  correct 
pronunciation  of  French  is  marred  by  the  harsh  American 
"  nasal  twang,"  that  is  almost  never  heard  in  France  and  in 
England.  As  few  people  seem  conscious  of  this  defect,  and 
as  it  is  well-nigh  universal  in  America,  it  seems  wise  to  call 
attention  to  it  at  the  outset,  though  it  would  be  difficult  to 
provide  a  sure  remedy  for  it.  The  proper  quality  of  the 
voice  can,  perhaps,  best  be  attained  by  imitating  those  free 
from  the  "nasal  twang,"  and  by  cultivating  the  clear, 
musical  tones  used  by  good  singers. 


SOME  UNDERLYING  PRINCIPLES  5 

Union  of  Sounds.  The  sounds  of  a  French  word  may  be 
said  to  interpenetrate  in  a  way  that  English  sounds  do  not. 
Thus  in  tourn6  the  lips  prepare  for  ou  while  the  tongue  is 
still  pronouncing  t ;  likewise  in  coin,  loin,  noir,  roue,  bou<, 
goiif  the  lips  are  thrust  forward  and  rounded  during  the 
formation  of  the  consonants.  All  changes  of  position  follow 
each  other  with  rapidity  and  vigor. 

2.  The  Division  of  Words  into  Syllables  is  the  first  step 
in  learning  to  pronounce  French,  primarily  because  the 
grouping  of  letters  makes  a  radical  difference  in  the  value 
of  the  syllables  (compare  the  nasal  sound  in  ton  with  the 
"  oral "  vowel  in  to-ne),  and  secondly  because  the  syllable, 
not  the  whole  word,  is  the  real  unit  of  pronunciation. 

French  words  are  so  divided  that,  if  possible,  a  consonant, 
or  an  easily  pronounced  group  of  consonants,  shall  begin 
each  syllable.     The  rules  for  division  into  syllables  are  :  — 

I.  Consonants  between  vowels  belong  to  the  syllable  of 
the  second  vowel  in  the  following  two  cases  :  — 

1st.  Every  single  consonant  (except  x  ^) ;  also  ch,  ph,  th^ 
and  gn,  which  are  really  single  sounds  :  e.  g.,  6-v6-ne-men^ 
p^-n^-tr6,  di-gni-t6,  a-char-n6,  a^ihee. 

2d.  Two  or  three  consonants  (of  which  the  last  is  r  or  /) 
capable  of  beginning  a  French  word ;  these  are  6r,  hi,  cr, 
cl,  dr,  fr,  fl,  gr,  gl,  pr,  pi,  tr,  vr,  chr,  chl,  phr,  phi,  thr,  thl 
(But  not  rl  and  Ir.)  Examples  :  ta-bl(e),  sk-ih\hte,  a-droi/, 
i-vr(e),  r6-gl(e),  tim-br(e),  in-flu-en-ce. 

II.  Other  groups  of  consonants  must  be  divided  :  e.  g., 
al-ler,  par-ler,  cor-rect,  mon-ter,  lan-g?<e. 

Note  1.  —  But  obvious  derivation  usually  nullifies  these  rules: 
sub-or-don-ner,  in-fe-gal.^ 

Note  2.  — A  "silent"  e  counts  as  a  syllable  in  dividing  a  word. 

1  Really  a  double  consonant  (=  ks  or  gz.) 

2  But  such  a  word  is  pronounced  as  if  divided  "  i-ne-gal." 


6  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

Exercise.  Divide  into  their  syllables :  T^m^rit^,  agneau, 
offrir,  exactemen^,  instinct,  inutile,  simpl(e),  cime,  souffler, 
manda^,  bont^,  facility,  ^pr(e),  union,  perdr(e)  d^b4cl(e), 
partir,  lettr(e)  calmg,  cbambr(e),  ensui^,  ensuit^,  ouver^, 
ouverte,  permit,  permise,  grise,  griser. 

Note.  —  A  "free"  syllable  is  one  that  ends  in  a  vowel:  e.g., 
fi-d^-li-te,  pe-re,  di-gn(e).  Any  other  syllable  is  "  checked  ":  mar-cher, 
pen-dan^,  dic-ter. 

3.  Tonic  Accent  (i.  e.,  stress  of  voice).  "  In  English 
words  the  accented  syllables  are  very  loud  and  the  un- 
accented ones  are  very  weak.  If  we  should  pronounce  '  uni- 
versality,' a  distant  listener  would  be  likely  to  hear  nothing 
but  u  and  sal."^  In  such  English  words  as  "Niagara," 
"American,"  "family,"  "general,"  "generally,"  "interest- 
ing," one  syllable  receives  nearly  all  the  emphasis,  and  the 
others  are  either  slurred  over,  or  not  pronounced  at  all 
(e.g.,  the  second  syllable  of  "family"  and  "general,"  in 
ordinary  rapid  speech).  A  French  word,  on  the  contrary, 
is  like  a  collection  of  equally  emphasized  monosyllables ; 
as  far  as  voice-stress  is  concerned,  the  French  word 
innocence  is  more  like  "in  no  sense,"  than  "innocence." 
If  we  carefully  compare  the  words  "  interesting "  and 
int^ressan^,  we  shaU  find  that  the  voice-stress  on  the  four 
syllables  of  the  English  word  may  be  approximately  repre- 
sented by  the  respective  numerical  values  4,  1,  1,  1,  (that 
is  to  say,  the  first  syllable  receives  four  times  the  emphasis 
of  the  other  three),  while  the  syllables  of  the  French  word 
should  be  rated  as  2,  2,  2,  3.^  The  best  authorities  main- 
tain that  there  is  a  slight  tonic  accent  on  the  last  syllable 

1  C.  H.  Grandgent,  in  "  The  Essentials  of  French  Grammar  "  (D.  C. 
Heath  and  Co.,  Boston,  1900),  par.  23. 

^  Taken  from  Bevier's  "French  Grammar,"  Henry  Holt  and  Co., 
1897. 


SOME  UNDERLYING  PRINCIPLES  7 

(not  counting  "  feminine  e  ")  of  a  French  word.^  "  When  a 
Frenchman  says  universality,  w,  ni,  ver^  sa,  li^  all  seem  to 
be  about  equal  in  force,  and  te  generally  sounds  a  trifle 
louder."  ^ 

Summary.  The  following  principles  should  be  minutely 
observed  in  reading  French  :  (1)  Analyze  each  word  into 
its  component  syllables  and  pronounce  one  at  a  time ;  this 
is  in  order  to  overcome  the  English  habit  of  slighting  un- 
accented syllables,  and  to  give  the  proper  attention  to  the 
individual  sounds.  (2)  Pronounce  each  consonant  in  the 
syllable  to  which  it  belongs,  making  each  syllable,  when 
possible,  end  with  a  vowel  (e.  g.,  ta-bieau,  not  tab-leau ; 
6-tai^,  not  et-aif).  (3)  Give  a  barely  perceptible  stress  to 
the  final  syllable  of  each  word,  and  a  slightly  stronger  stress 
to  the  last  syllable  of  a  clause.  Compare  the  rise  and  fall 
of  the  average  American  intonation  of  some  such  French 
sentence  as  the  following,  with  the  flowing  intonation  of 
the  native : 


"J'  6tais  k  Paris  Pann^e  pass6e" 

^^^v ^'^v^         ^-^v ^^^ (American  or  English. 

•'.^  ^     (French.) 


1  Sometimes  displaced  for  psychological  reasons.     In  excited  speech 
the  tonic  accent  is  usually  transferred  to  the  root-syllable  of  a  word. 

2  C.  H.  Grandgent,  ihid. 


PART  I 

THE  VOWEL  SOUNDS 

It  is  fundamentally  important  to  understand  the  wide 
differences  between  the  French  and  the  English  vowels. 
Not  only  are  the  similar  sounds  in  the  two  languages  really 
quite  distinct  in  quality,  but  many  of  our  English  vowels 
have  a  composite  character  that  is  wholly  unknown  in 
French.  Take,  for  example,  the  vowels  of  the  words  "  day  " 
and  "  doe,"  and  pronounce  each  of  the  two  sounds  slowly. 
It  should  at  once  become  evident  that  each  vowel  is  a 
double  sound,  being  composed  of  a  "pure  vowel,"  followed 
by  what  is  called  a  "glide."  "Day"  is  made  up  of  the 
vowel  sound  that  we  find  in  "debt,"^  followed  by  a  short 
glide  similar  to  the  ee  in  "deep";  it  is  really  "deh-*^" 
In  like  manner  "  doe  "  is  nothing  less  than  "  do-'^ "  {o  as  in 
"box,"  u  as  in  "fuU")/^  The  change  from  the  pure  vowel 
to  the  glide  is  accompanied  by  a  shifting  of  the  lips  or 
tongue.  Remember  that  glides  do  not  exist  in  French, 
and  under  no  circumstances  allow  the  vocal  organs  to 
change  position  during  the  formation  of  any  French 
vowel. 

There  are  in  French  16  vowel  sounds.  They  fall  natu- 
rally into  four  groups  of  four  each.  Other  varieties  exist, 
especially  in  unaccented  syllables,  so  that  one  could  really 
find  an  infinite  number  of  variations ;  but,  wherever  possi- 
ble, we  have  aimed  at  simplicity,  and  so  we  have  neglected 

1  As  pronounced  by  many  people,  the  first  element  of  this  double 
sound  is  much  closer  than  the  vowel  of  "  debt." 

2  Approximately.  For  a  scientific  discussion  of  the  values  of  these 
vowels  in  England,  see  Henry  Sweet,  "A  Primer  of  Phonetics," 
Clarendon  Press,  1890,  pp.  71-77. 


THE  VOWEL  SOUNDS 


these  finer  shades.     In  our  opinion  the  student  may  safely 
hope  to  learn  them  later  by  imitation. 


Series  I.     (the  lingual  series),  i,  e,  e ,  a. 

1.  i  is  similar  to  the  ee  of  "  feet,"  but  with  marked  differ- 
ences.    The  i  of  "  finish  "  does  not  exist  in  French. 

Physiology}  The  teeth  should  be  nearly  closed;  the 
corners  of  the  mouth  are  far  apart,  —  farther  than  in 
"feet";  lips  close,  making  a  narrow  opening;  tongue 
thrust  vigorously  forward,  the  front  part  nearly  touching 
the  roof  of  the  mouth,  and  the  tip  against  the  lower  teeth. 
Keep  the  vowel  pure  throughout,  avoiding  the  glide  found 
in  the  English  word  "  see  "  (=  approximately  "  see^®  ").  It 
may  be  long  (6pitr(e)),  or  short  (6pi),  —  a  fact  that  may 
cause  slight  variations  in  quality. 

Represented  in  French  by  :  — 

(1)  i  and  i  :   nic/,  d6sir,  ile. 

Note. — For  an  important  exception,  — i.  e.,  when  the  vowel  is 
followed  in  the  same  syllable  by  m  or  w, — see '*  Nasal  Vowels" 
(p,  22).  This  exception  applies  to  eveiy  French  vowel,  but  this  note 
will  not  be  repeated  in  each  case. 

(2)  y  '.  lyre,  gjrmnastiqMe,  syllabe. 

(3)  le  when  final :  vie,  partie.^ 

Note  I.  —  i  is  silent  in  psit. 

Note  2.  —  For  the  peculiar  pronunciation  of  the  group  o^,  see  p.  13 : 
4,  (2). 

Exercises.    (1)  i,  i,  i,  i ;  i (very  long) ;  i,  i,  i,  i ;  i 

(very  long).     Repeat  frequently. 

^  The  best  means  of  directing  the  shape  of  the  mouth  is  to  practise 
before  a  mirror.  If  the  tongue  cannot  be  seen,  its  changes  of  position 
can  sometimes  be  determined  by  placing  the  finger  or  a  pencil  upon  it. 
See  also  the  photographs  in  the  works  by  Rousselot  and  Burguet  men- 
tioned in  the  preface. 

2  Really  nothing  more  than  i  followed  by  a  silent  e. 


10  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

Note  to  Teachers.  —  An  effective  means  of  impressing  the  true 
pronunciation  of  French  words  on  the  student  is  to  have  him  occa- 
sionally write  them  phonetically,  as  far  as  he  can.  Let  the  words  of 
these  exercises  be  written  with  all  silent  letters  omitted  and  the  pho- 
netic signs  substituted,  as  fast  as  the  student  becomes  acquainted  with 
them,  for  the  frequently  misleading  spelling  of  the  current  orthography. 
For  such  sounds  as  i,  r,  or  1,  this  exercise  is  of  little  importance,  but 
in  other  cases  it  would  be  invaluable;  e.  g.,  temps  (ta),  maintien^ 
(metie),  ^oigf  (dwa)i,  etc.  This  would  make  an  excellent  blackboard 
exercise.  We  feel  that  it  is  more  profitable  to  suggest  this  task  to  the 
student  than  to  supply  ourselves  the  phonetic  transcription  of  all  the 
words  given  in  the  book. 

(2)  Fini,^  ministr(e),  midi,  ici,  vi^,  syllabe,  minui^, 
demie,  si,  di^,  dite^,  ile,  il,  lis,  dire,*  vie,  lime,  gite,  pire, 
abime,  initiative,*  lis,^  jadis,  parricide,  mais,  Clovis,  gvis, 
grise,  cerise,  Cambyse,  Venise. 


2.  e  ("close  e  ")  falls  in  sound  between  the  English  vowels 
of  "feet"  and  "fate."  Avoid  the  glide  "eh««."  (Read 
again  p.  8.)    This  vowel  is  never  long. 

Physiology.  The  teeth  and  lips  are  open  a  little  wider 
than  for  i,  corners  of  the  mouth  are  nearer  together,  front 
of  tongue  less  forward  and  less  raised  but  still  quite  tense. 

Represented  in  French  by  :  — 

(1)  /(note  the  acute  accent),  which  always  occurs  in  a 
free  syllable  :  p6n6tr6,  6t6. 

(2)  e  (without  accent-mark)  before  all  silent  final  conso- 
nants except  t  :  aller,  piec? ;  also  in  et. 

Note.  —  In  mes,  tes,  ses,  des,  and  les,  the  vowel  =  e  or  e. 

1  It  is  here  assumed  that  the  student  knows  only  the  signs  for  the 
vowel  sounds,  and  uses  the  ordinary  letters  for  the  others. 

2  Be  sure  to  say  "fee-nee,"  not  "finnee";  "mee-neestre,"  not 
"mineestre." 

8  Vowels  marked  thus,  I,  are  long  ;  not  all  such  are  indicated. 

*  We  shall  not  yet  make  the  distinction  between  vowels  and  semi- 
vowels. 

6  In  speaking  of  fleur-de-lis  on  coats  of  arms,  the  older  pronuncia- 
tion, lis,  is  used. 


THE  VOWEL   SOUNDS  11 

(3)  e  (without  accent-mark)  in  the  prefixes  «/+/  and  des-\-s  (except 
dessus  and  dessous)  :  effe^,  dessert. ^ 

(4)  e  (without  accent-mark)  in  e<,  and  in  foreign  words:  te  deum, 
requiem,  revolver. 

(5)  ai  at  the  end  of  verbs  :  allai,  serai  and  in  the  following 

words:  ai,^  baiser,^  fais,*  fai^,^  gcai,^  gai,  mai*,^  quai,^  sais,^  sai^,' 
and  all  words  beginning  with  aigu-.^ 

Exercises,     (l)  e,  e,  e,  e ;  e (very  long) ;  avoid  the 

glide ;  e,  e,  e,  e  ;  e (very  long);  repeat  many  times. 

(2)  Degenere,  deced^,  beb^,  eternity,  aimer,  ne^,  clef, 
effe^,  donnai,  serai,  pre,  fidelite,  d^,  ete,  bevue,  fmn6e, 
ssiis,  gai,  ferai,  donnai,  dessert,  dessin,  charmer,  charmai, 
effort. 


3  8  ("  open  e  "  )  is  like  the  vowel  of  "  bed  "  pronounced 
with  the  mouth  open  wider  than  for  the  English  sound: 
this  distinction  is  important;  the  vowels  of  "bell"  and 
belle,  "  send  "  and  Seine  are  not  identical.  Avoid  also  the 
double  sound  "eh'^^"     (See  p.  8.)* 

Physiology.  Starting  with  e,  open  the  mouth  still  wider, 
until  it  has  the  form  of  a  long  ellipse  :  lower  the  tongue. 

Represented  in  French  by  :  — 

(1)  ei,  ^,  and  e  (note  the  grave  and  circumflex  accent- 
marks),  without  exception  :  p^re,  chene,  Seine. 

(2)  e  (without  accent-mark)  in  any  checked  syllable  not 
final  :  celle,  destin,  perte,  merle. 

(3)  e  (without  accent-mark)  before  pronounced  final 
consonants  :  cher,  bee,  bel.  (Also  in  est  (=  "is"),  and 
optionally  in  me.*?,  te*-,  ses,  les,  des). 

1  "  Diet,  phon."  also  prefers  e  in  the  prefixes  ex-  (or  hex-)  and  ess- 
before  a  vowel  or  h  mute,  in  desceiidr(e)  with  derivatives,  and  in 
beffroi. 

2  In  j'ai,  but  not  in  ai-j^. 

^  "Diet,  phon."  allows  the  choice  between  e  and  e  in  these  words. 
*  An  equally  pernicious,  but  less  common,  glide  pronunciation  is 
that  which  converts  r§ve  into  *'  reh^v  "  {u  as  in  "  but "). 


12  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

(4)  e  (without  accent-mark)  before  final  t  (even  when  silent),  and  ts 
of  the  plural :  effe;!,  je^,  ne^,  jouefe  (e<,  "  and,"  is  an  exception). 

(5)  e  (without  accent-mark)  before  il  andiVZ :  abeille,  groseilk,  eveil, 
soleil. 

(6)  ai  (except  at  the  end  of  a  verb,  and  in  the  isolated 
words  already  mentioned,  p.  11  :  (5)):  aimais,  aimerais, 
essai  (compare  donnai,  donnerai,  and  sai<). 

Note  1.  —  For  faisan^,  faisons,  etc.,  see  p.  19 :  (3). 

Note  2.  —  il  and  ill  usually  have  the  value  of  the  semivowel  j  (see 
pp.  32  and  39):  for  this  reason  in  -ail-  and  -aill-,  a  does  not  com- 
bine with  i  to  form  the  vowel  8,  but  these  groups  are  pronounced 
a  H-  j  :  likewise  eil  and  eill  =  8  +  j :  bataille,  soleil. 

Note  3.  —  ain,  aim,  ein,  and  eim,  (in  checked  syllables)  are  all  nasals 
(seep.  25:  (3)  and  (4)). 

(7)  ay  and  ey :  Douay,  Ney. 

Note.  —  The  letter  y  between  vowels  has  the  value  of  i  -f  i,  so 
ay  =  ai  +  i,  and  ey  =  ei-j-i:  this  means  that  both  ay  and  ey  are  equiva- 
lent to  8  -f  j  (see  p.  32).  Be  sure  to  pronounce  the  semivowel  j :  thus 
aye2;=  e  j  e  and  not  8  e. 

Exercises.     (1)   8,  8,  8,  e  ;  e ,  etc.,  as  before. 

(2)^  Chine,  chains,  saine,^  Seine,^  cene,^  scene,^  senng, 
Vincennes,  bete,  aime,  plaisir,  vrai,  fete,'^  faite,^  raison,  fier, 
sec,  del,  effe^,  es^,  est,  reine,^  rene,^  raine,^  Rennes,  tete,* 
tette,^  tete,  elle,  cette,  sexe,  ferme,  mesquin,  descendr(e),^ 
allais,  seraiz^,  sevaient,  aurai^,  auraie?i^,  aise,  soleil,  orteil, 
groseille,  eveil. 

Note.  — Between  e  and  8  many  phoneticians  place  a  "middle  e." 
We  shall  not  give  this  sound  separate  classification,  but  shall  warn  the 
student  that  both  e  and  8  often  approach  this  middle  sound,  especially 
in  an  atonic  syllable. 

1  In  an  exercise,  like  this  one,  where  so  many  different  letters  may 
stand  for  the  same  sound,  it  would  be  well  for  the  student  to  be  asked 
to  explain  why  each  group  has  the  value  of  8  . 

2  Particular  attention  is  called  to  the  juxtaposition  of  words  pro- 
nounced alike  but  spelled  differently. 

*  **  Diet,  phon."  allows  e  in  this  word. 


THE  VOWEL  SOUNDS  13 

4.  a  (the  usual  sound  of  a  in  French)  is  "  intermediate 
both  in  formation  and  acoustic  effect  to  the  English  vowel 
sounds  in  'part'  and  *pat.'"^  Avoid  drawling  out  into 
a-a-a.     Generally  short  (ra^,  pate). 

Physiology.  Starting  with  e,  open  the  mouth  wider 
(it  is  now  a  wide  ellipse)  ;  lower  the  front  of  the  tongue, 
but  keep  the  point  against  the  lower  teeth. 

Represented  in  French  by:  — 

(1)  a;  cha^,  la.  For  exceptions  see  a  under  Series  II, 
p.  14. 

Note.  —  a  is  silent  in  ao^t  (usually),  aotitcron  (and  other  deriva- 
tives), Curacao,  Saone. 

(2)  The  digraph  oi  regularly  has  the  value  of  a  pre- 
ceded by  w  :  moi  (  =  mwa)  doi^^,  boir^.  But  i  is  silent  in 
o/gnon. 

(3)  Exceptionally  by  e  in  femmc,  couennc,  Aennir,  nenni,  rouen- 
nerie,  solennel  (1st  e),  and  adverbs  in  -emment  (prudemmen^). 

Exercises.    (1)  a,  a,  a,  a ;  a  —  ;  etc.,  as  before. 

(2)  La,  ta,  ma,  a,  par,  canarc?,  cheval,  va,  donna, 
donnas,  ra^,  patte,  par^,  page,  sage,  malade,  bavarde, 
large,  femme,  canal,  Aennir,  baba,  recommend,  papa, 
Malaga,  Panama,  cap,  lac,  mal,  moi,  soi,  loi,  noir,  poison, 
voir,  choix,  q^^oiqi^e,  boite,^  boite,^  droite. 

Note.  — We  have  not  considered  it  wise  to  mention  the  "middle  a," 
since  even  a  and  a  are  not  always  sharply  distinguished. 


Series  II.     a,  o,  o,  u. 

1.  a  (the  less  common  sound  of  a  in  French)  is  similar 
to  a  in  "  part." 

Physiology.  Mouth  possibly  a  bit  wider  than  for  a  ;  lips 
more  nearly  round,  but  not  forward ;  tongue  broad  and  flat, 

1  Sweet :  "A  Primer  of  Phonetics,"  p.  85. 

2  "  Diet,  phon."  allows  a  or  a. 


14  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

with  its  point  so  far  retracted  as  not  to  touch  the  lower 
teeth.  Do  not  round  the  lips  as  for  the  English  "  hall,"  or 
this  sound  will  be  confused  with  the  second  of  the  series. 

Represented  in  French  by:  — 

(!)  a  (note  the  accent-mark)  except  in  verb  endings  : 
ame,  P^qMes.  (Compare  donnsimes  and  similar  verb-forms 
of  the  first  conjugation.) 

(2)  a  (without  accent-mark)  before  final  s,  and  usually 
before  "  medial  s  "  (i.  e.,  s  with  the  sound  of  z) :  pas,  base. 

(3)  a  in  various  words,  of  which  the  most  important  are:  a.h,  basse 
(and  derivatives),  classe,  classer  (etc.),  damner,  declamer,  espace, 
flamme,  lace/!,  lasser,  macon,  passer,  passion  (and  derivatives),  pro- 
clamer,  and  reclames :  also,  according  to  some  authorities,  words  in 
-acle,  -asion,  -ation,  -avre,  and  (sometimes)  -aill- :  racier,  Evasion, 
nation,  navre,  bailler.     But  for  nearly  all  of  these  usage  varies. 

Exercises.     (1)  a,  a,  a,  a ;  d (very  long).  Eepeat. 

(2)  ^  Classer,  basse,  racl(e),  pate,  pale,  bl§,me,  tatons, 
S-me,  §,ne,  Chalons,  Paqwes,  las,  cas,  repas,  vase,  base, 
ecraser,  extase,  platr(e),  bache,  lasse,  tasse,  Spr(e). 

Remark  1.  The  digraph  oi  is  ^va,  instead  of  wa,  in  the  following 
cases : — 

(1)  Generally  after  r :  accroitr(e),  croiaj,  trois,  roi. 

(2)  In  the  words,  bois  (=  "wood"),  mois,  poio^s,  pois,  poij?,  vole, 
and  a  few  others ;  but  the  line  of  demarcation  is  not  sharply  drawn 
between  "wa  and  "wa. 

Note.     The  word  poSle  and  derivatives  are  pronounced  p-wa :  1,  etc. 

Remark  2.  Before  the  group  oi  (=  wa)  the  consonant 
groups  bl^  cl,  gl,  pi  (i.  e.,  cons.  +  0  and  cr,  dr,  fr^  pr,  tr 
(i.  e.,  cons.  +  r)  are  hard  to  pronounce  on  account  of  the 
combinations  blw^  crw,  trw^  etc.  This  difficulty  is  avoided 
by  the  insertion  of  a  lightly  pronounced  "feminine  e "  just 
before  the  w  :  cvoU  is  then,  really,  kr^wa,  f roi^  is  fr^wa, 
and  Bloi.9  =  bPwa. 

1  a  is  almost  always  long  in  the  tonic  syllable,  when  it  is  not  the 
last  sound  in  the  word. 


THE  VOWEL  SOUNDS  15 

Exercise.  Blois,  cloitr(e),  cloison,  gloir^,  ployer,  em- 
ployer, croir^,  croi^,  droi^,  adroit,  froic?,  froideur,  effroi, 
beffroi,  efFroyabl(e),  proie,  trois,  Troy^s,  Troyens. 

Note.  —  This  principle  may  be  applied  cautiously  to  the  groups, 
nwa.  rwa,  aud  Iwa. 


2.  o  ("  open  o,"  the  more  common  sound  of  o)  may  be 
compared  to  o  of  "ford"  and  "door."  It  falls  "between 
the  u  in  '  hut '  and  the  o  in  '  hot '  (rounded)."  ^ 

Physiology.  Beginning  with  a,  round  the  lips  slightly, 
putting  the  lower  one  forward  a  little  (the  mouth  now 
forms  a  large  round  opening).  The  back  of  the  tongue  is 
raised  a  little.  The  openness  of  this  sound  depends  to 
some  extent  on  the  surrounding  consonants ;  it  is  especially 
open  before  r. 

Represented  in  French  by:  — 

(1)  0  :  corjos,  col,  bonne. 

Note  1.  —  For  exceptions,  see  sound  3  of  this  series. 
Note  2.  — For  oi,  see  p.  13:  4,  (2). 

(2)  aUj  in  Paul,  in  autorit6,  and  before  r^:  Faure,  Maure. 
Au  tends  to  become  o  in  any  unaccented  syllable:  naauvai*, 
Auguste. 

(3)  Final  -urn  =  om  in  r/tum  and  in  Latin  words  (pensum). 

Exercises.     (1)  o,  o,  o,  o  ;  5 ,  etc. 

(2)  Eobe,  cote,  cor,^  loge/  comme,  notr(e),  soTt,^  bore?,* 
dot,  Maure,^  mor^,^  Laure,*  aurons,  aura,  aurore,^  Paul, 
choqwer,  moquer,  fdrt,^  implore,*  adore,*  gosse,  sotte, 
ignorant,  votr(e),  docte,  dogme,  golfe,  force,  orgue. 


3.   o  ("close  0,"  the  less  common  sound  of  o  in  French) 
is  like  the  o  of  "  tone "  made  long  and  pure.     It  'even 

1  Grandgent,  op.  cit.  par.  12.  *  Long  vowels. 

2  Allowed  also  in  automne. 


16  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

approaches  the  oo  of  "soon."  Avoid  the  double  sound 
"to"n"  (see  p.  8),  characteristic  of  the  speech  of  the 
South-Country  English  in  particular  :  the  lips  must  not 
change  position  while  pronouncing  this  vowel. 

Physiology.  Beginning  with  o,  raise  the  back  of  the 
tongue  still  higher  and  draw  back  the  point;  close  the 
jaws  a  little  more ;  advance  and  round  the  lips,  making  an 
opening  about  the  size  of  a  small  marble. 

Represented  in  French  by:  — 

(1)  6  (circumflex  accent)  :  n6tr(e),  dipl6me.  (Except  in 
hdtel,  li6pital,  r6ti,  and  a  few  others  where  atonic  6  tends  to 
become  o.) 

(2)  0  (without  accent-mark)  when  final,  or  followed  by 
silent  consonants  in  the  same  syllable  :  z6ro,  mo^s,  Vosges. 

(3)  0  (without  accent-mark)  before  "medial  s"  (=  z- 
sound),  and  the  ending  -tion  :  rose,  motion. 

(4)  0  (without  accent-mark)  before  final  -me  and  -ne'^:  tome,  zone. 
Monotone  is  an  exception  :  telephone  and  Aexagone  allow  o  or  o. 

(5)  0  in  a  few  isolated  words,  as  adosser,^  dossier,'-^  endosser,^  fosse, 
foss6,  fossette,  fossoyeur,  grosse'-^  and  derivatives.  2 

(6)  eau  :  beau,  agneau. 

(1)  au  (except  in  Paul  and  autorit6,  and  before  r)  : 
sau^,  pauvr(e). 

Exercises.    (1)  0,0,0,0;  6 . 

(2)*  So^,  san^,  sceau,  iot,  n6tr(e),  Cyrano,  chose,  cyclone, 
veau,  emotion,  chevaux,  flo^^,  po^,  peau,  tro^,  cote,  tableau, 
aua;,  aube,  primo,  dos,  nos,  vieillo^,  zone,  poser,  position, 
potion,  rose,  curiosite,  positif. 


4.  u  is  like  the  00  oi  "  foolish  "  with  the  lips  more  for- 
ward and  round. 

1  Ozone  allows  ozon,  ozo:n,  ozon,  and  ozo:n. 

2  By  analogy  with  gros  and  dos  ;  but  grosse  =  gros  or  gro:s. 

8  This  sound  is  long  in  an  accented  syllable  when  not  the  last  sound 
in  the  word. 


THE  VOWEL  SOUNDS  17 

Physiology.  Jaws  close  :  lips  far  forward  and  rounded 
as  if  to  whistle :  tongue  contracted  and  its  back  against 
the  soft  palate. 

Represented  in  French  by  ou  and  ou :  f ou,  joujou,  croute. 

Exercises.    (1)  u,  u,  u,  u  ;  u . 

(2)  Loup,  tdtLsse,  tous,  tou^,  toute,  jour,  ou,  oil,  fou, 
ao^t,  coup,  trou,  XoMent,  bijou,  joujou,  chou,  sou  sou^, 
froufrou,  mou,  amour,  blouse,  epoux,  epouse,  douze,  douaj, 
labour,  lourc^s,  Lourdes,  sourc?,  sourde,  pouZs,  jalouic,  rouic, 
toux,  hOMX.  

Series  III.  y,  <^,  oe,  a  (called  "abnormal,"  "complex,"  or 
'*  mid  "  vowels). 

1.  y,  like  the  German  u^  has  no  counterpart  in  English. 
It  is  generally  difficult  for  beginners. 

Physiology.  Say  i,  and,  without  allowing  the  tongue  to 
change  position^  round  the  lips  for  u  :  or,  inversely,  advance 
and  round  the  lips  for  u,  and,  keeping  them  in  that  positimi^ 
say  i.  In  other  words,  this  vowel  has  the  tongue-position 
of  i,  and  the  lip-position  of  u.  Remember  that  it  is  u 
infected  by  i ;  not  i  followed  by  u,  as  in  the  English  "yew," 
"dew." 

Represented  in  French  by  :  — 

(1)  u  and  u  (not  in  the  digraphs  ou  and  ou) :  tu,  rue,  mur. 

(2)  eu  and  eu  (the  e  being  silent)  throughout  the  verb 
avoir  1  (eurent,  en,  eumes),  and  in  gageure. 

Note.     U  is  silent  in  chut. 

Exercise.     (1)  y,  y,  y,  y ;  y . 

(2)  Lu,  (contrast  loue),  vu,  vue  (contrast  vous),  rue 
(contrast  roue),  futur,  murmurer,  culbute,  su,  feus,  ett, 
exLmes,  mu,  mur,  mur,  mure,  sur,  allure,  picure,  une,  pu,  pure. 

1  Representing  an  old  pronunciation.  Sur  and  mnr  were  written 
and  pronounced  seur  and  meur  in  Old  French  :  eu  should  logically 
have  similarly  changed  to  ic. 

2 


18  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

2.  <^  has  no  counterpart  in  English,  but  may  be 
loosely  compared  to  the  vowel  in  *'sir,"  with  the  lips  much 
more  round. 

Physiology.  Tongue-position  of  e  (that  is,  fairly  flat, 
with  back  arched)  :  lips  rounded  as  for  o  (forward,  making 
a  round  opening  about  the  size  of  a  small  marble). 

Represented  in  French  by  eu^  or  oeu^  as  follows  :  — 

(1)  When  final :  peu,  voeu. 

(2)  Followed  by  silent  final  consonants  :  boeu/*,  deua;. 

(3)  Before  "medial  s"  and,  especially  in  the  tonic  syllable,  before  t: 
creuser  femeute,  neutr(e). 

(4)  In  jeiing  (  =  "fasting"),  jeiiner,  and  (allowed)  in  d^jeune?-. 

(5)  Before  pronounced  vowels,  except  -il  and  -ill :  hleuet,  bleuStr(e). 
Note.  —  The  word  queue  is  pronounced  k^. 

Exercises.    (1)  <^,  <^,  </>,</> ;  <^ . 

(2)  oeu/s,  feu,  lieu,  lieue,  lieua;,  pieua;,  feuaj,  voeu, 
heuve\ix,^  creua;,  meute,  feutr(e),  neutr(e),  precieuse, 
Mouse,  berceuse,  danseuse,  voucc,  vioua?,  Diou,  noouc?,  couic. 


3.     CB  is  somewhat  like  the  z  of  "  sir." 

Physiology.  Tongue-position  of  e  (though  its  back  is  a 
little  lower)  ;  lips  form  a  rounded  ellipse  as  for  o  :  e.  g.,  try 
to  pronounce  pdre  and  pore  at  the  same  time,  and  the  re- 
sult will  be  peur  (=poB:r). 

Represented  in  French  by  :  — 

(1)  eu  and  oeu^  except  as  explained  under  <^  ^ :  boeuf,8 
leur. 

(2)  oe  and  eu  before  il  and  ill :  oeii,  oeiile^'  f  euiiie. 

(3)  ue  after  c  and  g  :  accueil,  orgueii. 

(4)  In  many  words  atonic  o  tends  to  have  this  sound  :  absolamen^ 
joll,  solide. 

1  Why  is  not  the  first  digraph  eu  equivalent  to  0  ? 

2  Except  also  eu  in  the  verb  avoir. 

*  The  /  of  boenf  and  of  oeuf  is  sounded  in  the  singular,  silent  in  the 
plural:  boeu/s,  oeu/Js. 


THE  VOWEL  SOUNDS  19 

(1)  oe,  OB,  ce,  oe  ;  ce . 

(2)  oeuf,  soeur,  seul,  beurre,  jeune,  veuve,  aveugl(e), 
peupl(e),  deuil,  seuil,  coenr,  choevLv,  Aeurter,  meurtr(e), 
peuplier,  farceur,  plaideur,  fleuve,  oeuvr(e),  neuf,  cou- 
leuvr(e),  pecheur,  pecheur,  Aauteur,  Aeure,  fleur,  leur. 


4.  a  ("feminine"  or  "mute"  e)  is  like  the  slurred  e  in 
"  th'  man,"  or  the  u  in  "  but "  and  "  suppose  " ;  but  the  lips 
should  be  more  rounded.  It  is  practically  the  same  as  a 
short  ce,  stress  being  the  only  important  difference  between 
the  two  sounds ;  so  when  some  emphasis  falls  on  a,  it  tends 
to  become  ce  (or  even  <^)  :  thus  dites-ie  =  ditlce  (or  ditl<^). 
Compare  further:  le  repas  with  leurs  pa.<?,  je  le  retiens  with 
je  leur  tiens,  and  je  le  redis  with  je  leur  dis. 

Physiology.  Lips  less  round  than  for  <^,  and  more  than 
for  CB.     Tongue  lower  and  further  back  than  for  <^. 

Represented  in  French  by  ;  — 

(1)  e  (without  accent-mark)  in  any  free  syllable:  venir, 
se,  de,  dev^nir. 

(2)  e  (without  accent-mark)  in  dessous,  dessus,  and  in  the  prefix  res 
+  s  (ressentir,  ressembler,  etc.). 

(3)  a^,  by  exception,  in  the  first  syllable  of  words  of  two 
syllables  derived  from  f  aire :  f  aison^,  f  aisai^,  f  aiseur^  f  aisan^ 
Also  in  the  compound  :  satisfaisan^ 

Feminine  e  is  sometimes  nearly  or  wholly  silent^  as 
follows :  — 

(1)  When  final  it  is  silent  after  "  voiceless  "  ^  consonants, 
and  is  weakened  after  "  voiced  " :  6tape,  barb(e),  pate  rad(e), 
briqwe,  vogM(e). 

1  The  terms  "voiced"  and  "voiceless"  are  defined  under  conso- 
nants, p.  39. 


20  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

Exceptions  :  —  (a)  In  isolated  monosyllables  and  often  in  compounds 
with  -qiie,  it  receives  full  stress  :  je,  ne,  le,  q^/e,  puisq?ie,i  tandisqi<e,i 
lorsqwe.i 

(b)  After  a  group  of  consonants,  such  as  gn,  vr,  hi,  pr,  tr,  cr,  cl,  tl, 
which  cannot  be  pronounced  without  a  "vowel  of  support,"  it  has  a 
light  pronunciation :  pauvr(e),  diabl(e),  pourpr(e). 

(2)  Silent  when  followed  by  s  of  the  plural  (monosyl- 
lables excepted)  and  by  final  -nt  of  verbs  (third  person 
plural)  :  perches,  horavctes,  cherchewf,  donnen/,  excellent.  ^ 

(3)  Silent,  especially  in  familiar  speech,  whenever  it  can 
be  omitted  without  leaving  an  unpronounceable  group  of 
consonants  :  ^l^ver,  je  te  dis,  je  le  vols,  rejet6,  tou«  le  monde, 
en  revanche,  la  Revue,  le  petif  chien,  paierai,  louerai,  61evan/, 
e^  le  veni,  le  neveu,  acheter,  achever,  peloton,  Lammenais, 
au  revoir,  votre  age,  contre  elle,  entre  autr(e)5,  lib  re  arbitr(e). 

Note.  —  Compare  the  following  words  and  expressions  in  which 
the  suppression  of  this  e  would  leave  a  more  or  less  harsh  consonant- 
group:  q2tatre-temj3s,  qi^atre-vingr^s,  peser,  bedeau,  g/ienille,  relier, 
parvenu,  arq?yebusc,  fleur  de  lis,  Angleterrg,  autrefois,  grenouille, 
Sprete,  siflftera.^  The  rules  for  the  suppression  of  e  are  so  complicated 
that  it  is  safer  to  trust  to  instinctive  imitation. 

(4)  Silent  in  Jean  and  Jeanne :  and  after  g  before  a,  o,  and  u, 
where  its  function  is  simply  to  show  that  g  is  soft :  mangeons,  geai, 
gageure. 

Remark  1.  —  In  syllabification  and  (frequently)  in  poetry  a  feminine 
e  counts  as  a  syllable. 

Remark  2.  — The  chief  phonetic  value  of  a  final  e  (without  accent- 
marks)  is  often  simply  to  bring  out  an  otherwise  silent  consonant :  com- 
pare sui^  and  suite,  puis  and  puise,  por^  and  porte,  gris  and  grise. 

Exercises.     See  the  examples  given. 

1  "Diet,  phon."  allows  the  choice  between  a  fully  pronounced  and 
a  silent  e. 

2  Compare  the  adjective  excellent. 

8  On  the  other  hand  it  tends  to  introduce  itself  into  a  difficult  group 
of  consonants:  arc(9)  boutani!,  arc^e)  de  triomphe. 


THE  VOWEL  SOUNDS  21 

Note.  —  All  but  the  last  one  of  the  vowels  thus  far 
studied  may  be  conveuiently  classified  in  the  following 
"  vowel-triangle  "  : 

i  y  u 

e  <^  o 

e      oe      o 

a     a 

In  i  the  comers  of  the  mouth  are  drawn  back  as  far  as 
possible,  and  the  tongue  thrust  forward  :  u  represents  the 
opposite  extreme  —  lips  forward  and  round,  tongue  well 
back.  The  sounds  in  Series  I  (i  to  a)  are  made  by  pro- 
gressively lowering  the  back  of  the  tongue  and  decreasing 
its  pressure  against  the  teeth,  and  by  bringing  the  mouth 
from  the  shape  of  a  narrow  slit  to  that  of  a  rounded 
ellipse. 

Exercises  on  Series  I.  (1)  i,  e,  e ,  a ;  i,  e,  e ,  a ;  (etc., 
5  times,  at  least,  through  the  series). 

(2)  i ,  § ,   8 , ,  a (all  very  long). 

Repeat  (1)  and  (2)  alternately  over  and  over. 

(3)  Bich^,  b^ni,  b^che,  ball^;  qui,  k^pi,  qu^te,  cab;  si, 
c^der,  c'e^^,  sa;  dit,  d6,  dai^,  dame;  fi#,  f6e,  fai^r,  fade; 
gui,  gai,  gu^^e,  gage;  gU,  j'ai,  j'aime,  jatte;  li#,  \6,  laine, 
la;  mie,  m^di^,  m^re,  ma;  uid,  n6,  naXt,  natte;  pie,  p^tale, 
pai.r,  patte ;  ri#,  r^,  raie,  rapt ;  tige,  M,  taire,  ta ;  vie,  v^to, 
y^tSj  va ;  zizanie,  z^br^,  z^br(e),  basan^. 

The  sounds  of  Series  11.  (a  to  u)  are  made  by  progres- 
sively rounding  and  thrusting  forward  the  lips,  and  draw- 
ing back  and  raising  the  tongue. 

Exercises  on  Series  IL  (1)  a,  o,  o,  u ;  a,  o,  o,  u ;  (etc., 
5  times). 

(2)  a ,5 ,6 ,  u .    Repeat  (1)  and  (2). 

(3)  Base,  bott^,  beau,  boule ;  case,  col,  cdte,  cou ;  sa^,  sol, 
saule,  sou;  dawner,  dot,  dos,  douche;  fabl(e),  folle,  fau^, 


22  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

fou;  gaz,  gomm^,  gauche,  gotit ;  jaser,  Job,  jaune,  joue: 
l^ch^,  hoGheSy  lotj  loup;  m4che,  molk,  mok,  moule; 
nation,  note,  no5,  nous;  VkqueSj  Paul,  Pau,  pouk;  r^le, 
rAum,  ros^,  rou^r ;  t^che,  toUe,  t6^,  tou# ;  vase,  vol,  V05,  vous ; 
gris4tr(e),  Basoche,  zone,  Zoulous. 

The  complex  vowels  (y,  <^,  and  ce)  are  due  to  a  combina- 
tion of  the  sounds  in  the  same  horizontal  line  with  them  in 
the  triangle,  y  has  the  lip-position  of  u  and  the  tongue- 
position  of  i.  <j>  has  the  lip-position  of  o  and  the  tongue- 
position  of  e.  Similarly,  ce  is  a  combination  of  o  and  e. 
In  each  case  this  must  be  a  real  combination  in  a  single 
sound,  and  not  a  transition  from  one  to  the  other. 

Exercises.  (1)  i,  u,  y ;  i,  u,  y  (to  be  repeated).  (2)  Bise, 
hout,  bu ;  qwi,  cou,  cuve ;  si,  sou,  su ;  dis,  doacc,  du ;  fis,  fou, 
fume ;  gwide,  goti^,  aigiie ;  gille,  jour,  jure ;  lis,  loue,  lu ;  mi#, 
mou,  mti;  nie,  nous,  nu;  pile,  pou/s,  pu;  ri,  rouge,  rue, 
tige,  touche,  tu ;  ville,  voue,  vu ;  visite,  Zoulous,  mesure. 

(3)  e,  o,  <fi;  e;  o,  (f>  (to  be  repeated).  (4)  B^b^,  beau, 
boeu^s ;  indiqwer,  c6ne,  qz^eue ;  c^der,  so^,  ceu^ ;  dd,  ddme, 
deu^ ;  f(^e,  fau^,  feu ;  gu6,  Goth,  gueuiP ;  geai,  ge6le,  jeu ; 
le;^,  I'eau,  gouleu.r;  Mddie,  mot,  Meuse ;  n6,  nos,  noeu6?; 
p^ton,  peau,  peu;  r^,  rdle,  Aeureu^;  th6,  taupe,  teuton; 
v^to,  veau,  voeu ;  z^br^,  zone,  des1)eu/s. 

(5)  e,  o,  OB ;  e,  o,  ce  (to  be  repeated).  (6)  Baie,  bonne, 
beurre;  qu'  est-ce'i  comme,  coeur;  c'es^,  somme,  soeur;  d^s, 
donne,  deuil ;  {^te,  forme,  feuille ;  gt^erre,  gomme,  orgueil ; 
je^.  Job,  jeune ;  \a.it,  loqtie,  leur ;  me^s,  moUe,  meure ;  neige, 
noce,  neuf ;  p^se,  poche,  peur ;  reine,  robe,  ^orreur ;  terre,  tor#, 
hauteur;  vaine,  vol,  veuf ;  z^br(e),  zostfere,  onze  heuTes. 


Series  IV.     The  Nasal  Vowels,     a,  i,  5,  6b. 

When  a  vowel  is  followed  directly  in  the  same  syllable 
hy  n  or  m  (not  mm,  mn,  nn,  or  nm),  it  completely  changes 
quality  and  becomes  nasal.     Thus  pendan/,  enf  an/,  lointain. 


THE  VOWEL  SOUNDS  23 

embonpoint,  un  contain  nasal  vowels  only ;  while  u-ne,  mg- 
me,  sai-ne,  pei-ne,  ba-nal,  ann^e,  calomnig,  inn6,  immoral 

contain  no  nasal  vowels. 

{a   vowen 
h-mute    I 

other  circumstances  is  nasal. 

Note  1.  — The  prefix  en-  (from  the  Latin  in-)  is  nasal,  even  when 
followed  by  a  vowel,  w,  n,  or  silent  h  —  (except  in  enn^mi,  and  a  few 
words  recently  brought  into  French,  such  as  6nerver)  :  e.g.:  —  ennui, 
ennoblir,  emmSler,  enivrer,  enorg^eillir,  en/tardir  {h  not  linked  with  a). 

Note  2.  —  iV  before  m  causes  a  nasal  sound  in  tinmes  and  vinmes 
(=te:m,  ve:m). 

Physiology  of  the  Nasal  Vowels.  Remember  that  this 
union  of  m  or  n  with  a  vowel  represents  a  single  nasal  sound 
in  which  there  is  no  vestige  of  consonantal  m  or  n.  The 
mouth  should  be  left  open  after  the  nasal  vowels  :  hence  in 
temj05  there  should  be  no  lip-pressure  (as  for  the  consonant 
m\  and  in  tan<  no  tongue -pressure  (as  for  n).  The  nasal 
vowels  are  four,  corresponding  to  the  four  "  oral "  vowels 
a,  e,  o,  OB.  In  making  these  "  oral "  vowels  nasal,  the  only- 
important  change  of  the  vocal  organs  is  to  lower  the  soft 
palate  and  raise  the  back  of  the  tongue  until  the  two 
almost  meet.  This  causes  the  air  to  be  expelled  through 
the  mouth  and  the  nose  at  the  same  instant^  and  the  nasal 
chambers  to  resound.^  In  the  English  nasal  sounds  of 
"sang,"  "sung,"  "sing,"  "song,"  the  tongue  and  palate 
actually  meet,  and  a  consonant  is  formed  :  this  sound  is  to 
he  carefully  avoided.  The  French  nasal  vowels  do  not  exist  in 
English  :  to  distinguish  between  the  nasals  of  the  two  languages,  close 

1  Try  making  a  nasal,  keeping  the  mouth  wide  open  and  a  mirror 
so  placed  that  the  action  of  the  tongue  and  the  palate  can  be  seen. 
Practice  changing  repeatedly  from  "oral  "  vowel  to  *'  nasal,"  and  vice- 
versa.  It  will  be  w^ell  to  press  the  finger  or  a  pencil  against  the  tongue 
so  as  to  keep  the  tip  from  moving. 


24  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

the  nostrils  by  pressure  from  without,  while  making  the  sound  :  if  it  is 
a  proper  French  nasal,  it  will  continue  unchanged  ;  if  it  is  the  English 
ng  it  will  cease  at  once. 

Note  1. — A  rough  rule  for  making  a  vowel  nasal  is  to  "talk 
through  the  nose  "  somewhat  while  pronouncing  it ;  this  however,  is  a 
mere  approximation,  as  the  metallic  quality  of  the  ordinary  American 
nasal  voice  —  caused  by  opening  the  nasal  passage  only  a  little  —  is  far 
different  from  the  resonant  musical  French  nasal,  due  to  a  wide-open 
nose-passage.  This  method  gives  better  results  for  a  than  for  the  other 
three  nasal  vowels. 

Note  2.  —  Nasal  vowels  are  short  when  final  ^  (pan,  ton,  pain,  k 
jeun);  long  before  a  pronounced  final  consonant  (tante,  pompe,  sainte, 
Aumbl(e)  ). 

Note  3.  —  For  each  of  the  nasal  vowels  the  jaws  are  slightly  closer 
and  the  tongue  further  back  than  for  the  corresponding  oral  vowel. 


Detailed  Discussion  of  the  Nasal  Vowels. 

1.    a  (the  sign  (^  indicates  nasal  quality). 

Pronounce  a  (as  in  ame)  and  make  it  nasal  as  directed. 
Do  not  confuse  this  sound  with  the  third  of  this  series,  but 
keep  the  mouth  wide  open. 

Represented  by :  — 

(1)  am  and  an :  ampl(e),  dan.*?. 

(2)  em  and  en  (for  exceptions  see  e,  (5),  and  a,  (3)  ) :  den«, 
templ(e). 

Note  1,  —  In  some  foreign  words  the  letters  a,  e,  m,  and  n,  have 
their  ordinary  separate  values,  and  do  not  indicate  nasality  :  —  Abram, 
Amsterdam,  Priam,  Rotterdam,  Wagram,  amen,  Jerusalem,  Beethoven. 
In  damner  and  its  compounds  a  is  not  nasal,  and  m  is  silent. 

Note  2.  —  Caen  is  pronounced  ka. 

(3)  am  {o  wholly  silent)  in  Laon,  Craon,  faon,  paon,  taon. 

1  Phonetically  final,  that  is  to  say  ;  not  necessarily  the  last  writterb 
letter  of  the  word. 


THE  VOWEL  SOUNDS  25 

Exercises.     (1)  d,d,d,d;ai . 

(2)  Dans,i>2  den^,^  an,^  en,^  enfanif,  franc,  dansan^,  chan- 
gean^,  membr(e),  geiidr(e),  rampe,  camp/  qwanc?/  Caen/ 
etan^,  lampe,  patience,  science,  patient,  flambeau,  centr(e), 
blane,  blanche,  entendan^,  mangean?^,  semblan?^,  entrant, 
Genty^  san^,^  san^,^  sen^,^  s'en,^  Jean,  cancan,  champ. 


2.  e  is  the  oral  vowel  e ,  made  nasal :  like  the  vowel  of 
"sang,"  without  the  consonantal  ng.  The  English  pro- 
nunciation of  "sang,"  too,  usually  contains  a  glide,  thus 
"  sa^^ng  "  :  make  the  French  nasal  pure. 

Represented  in  French  by  :  — 

(1)  in  and  im  :  vin,  simpl(e). 
Note.  —  om  =  w  e  :  poingr,  loin, 

(2)  yn  and  ^m  :  syntaxe,  nymphe. 

(3)  ain  and  aim :  vain,  f  aim. 

(4)  ein  and  eim :  sein,  Reims. 

(5)  en  when  final  (or  followed  by  s  of  the  plural)  after  ^ 
or  i  :  Troyens,  rien.  Likewise  in  verb-forms  from  tenir  and 
venir :  tiens,  vien^ 

(6)  eoi  in  some  foreign  words,  as  examen,  agenda,  Bubens,  pensiim, 
extenso,  memento,  Benjamin. 

(7)  671  after  e  :  Europeen,  lyceen. 

Exercises.     (1)  i,  e,  e,  i ;  e . 

(2)  Vin,^  vain,^  fin,'  faim,'  sein,^  sain,^  sein,^  simpl(e), 
lin,  index,  syntaxe,  peinture,  pain,^  pin,'  nymphe,  daim, 
Reims,  RMn,^®  reins,  ^^  frein,  bien,  chie^,  tiens,  viens,  vien^, 
moyen,  pensum,  loin,  soin,  nioins,  joindr(e),  foin,  crin, 
maintien^,  ainsi,  juin,  marin,  americain,  ancien,  memento, 
extenso. 

1  Compare  and  contrast  don^. 

2, 8,  4,  5  Words  bearing  the  same  numbers  are  precisely  alike  in 
sound. 

6, 7, 8, 9, 10    Precisely  alike  in  sound. 


26  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

3.  5  is  the  vowel  o,  as  in  gomme^  made  nasal;  like 
"long,"  without  the  consonantal  ng.  A  very  common 
error  is  to  pronounce  5  like  a  :  to  avoid  this  keep  the  lips 
forward  and  round,  and  do  not  open  the  mouth  too  wide. 

Represented  in  French  hy  :  — 

(1)  om  and  on  :  don«,  domj^ter. 
Exception :  on  =  a  in  monsieur. 

(2)  un  in  a  few  foreign  words  :  Brunswick,  Dunkerq^tg. 

Exercises  :  (1)  3,  5,  5,  5  ;  5 . 

(2)  Jyont,  i»  2  donc,2  bon,  mon,  ton,  lon^,  longwe,  ombr(e), 
coinbl(e),  com^te?',  son^,^  son,^  ont,^  on,*  plom^,  rend,  ronde, 
onze,  onzieme,  pompe,  fonc^,^  fon?^,^  fondr(e),  fonction,  lion, 
tombeau,  oncl(e),  bon  ton,  comptons,  prononciation,  savon, 
Savons,  (contrast  savant). 


4.  OB  is  ce  made  nasal.  It  is  just  like  e  with  the  lips 
rounded.     Its  vowel  quality  is  similar  to  that  of  "  sung  ". 

Represented  in  French  by  um,  un^  and  eun :  /iumbi(e), 
chaciin,  k  jeun. 

But  final  um  is  pronounced  om  in  Latin  words  (album,  pensnm), 
and  in  rAum. 

Exercises  :  —  (1)  ce,  ce,  ce,  ce ;  ce . 

(2)  un,  Mmbl(e),  chacun,  Me/mnp',  Meun^,  emprunter, 
qwelq?//un,  brun,  Autun,  commun,  emprun^,  parfum. 


Additional  Exercises:  —  (1)  a,  e,  5,  ce;  a,  e,  o,  ce; 
etc.,  5  times. 

(2)  a e 3 ce . 

(3)  Banc,  bain,  bon,  bun*  ® ; 
camp,  q^^inze,  cont^,  qw'un; 

1  Contrast  dans. 

2>  8^  4,  5  Precisely  alike  in  sound. 

^  Starred  forms  are  not  real  words. 


THE  VOWEL  SOUNDS  27 


dans,  daim,  don^,  d'un; 

fend,  faim,  hnt,  fun  * ; 

g&nt,  gain,  gond,  gun*; 

Jean,  gindr(e),  jonc,  jeun ; 

Tan,  lin,  lon^.  Tun  ; 

manche,  main,  mon,  Mehimg ; 

Nantes,  nain,  non,  nun  *  ; 

pente,  pain,  pon#,  pun  * ; 

ran^,  reins,  rone?,  run  * ; 

san^,  sain,  son#,  sun  * ; 

tan^,  tein#,  ton,  Autun ; 

ven^,  vain,  von#,  vun  * ; 

des  anges,  zain,  des  ongl(e)s,  zun. 


QUANTITY  OF   VOWELS  i 

We  shall  not  attempt  more  than  a  few  practical  rules  for 
French  vowel-quantity.  We  shall  distinguish  only  two 
degrees  of  length,  —  long  and  short  vowels,  —  though  half- 
length  is  very  common  in  the  unaccented  syllable.  "  It 
may  be  said  that  the  whole  range  of  French  quantity  is 
included  between  the  a  of  ' battery '  and  the  a  of  'bad,'  as 
these  words  are  pronounced  in  the  sentence  '  the  battery  is 
bad.'  .  .  .  We  may  say,  roughly,  that  the  long  vowels  vary 
in  length  between  the  a  in  '  bad '  and  the  a  in  '  bat ' ;  and 
that  the  short  vowels  range  between  the  a  in  '  bat '  and  the 
a  in  'battery.'  "  ^  Short  vowels  should  be  sharp  and  clear ; 
and  no  vowel,  however  long,  should  be  drawled  or  allowed 
to  change  its  quality  (see  above  on  "  glides  "). 

1  My  treatment  of  this  subject  is  hardly  more  than  a  restatement 
of  the  material  found  in  Passy's  "  Sons  du  Fran9ais,"  and  Grandgent's 
*'  Essentials  of  French  Grammar." 

^  C.  H.  Grandgent :  op.  cit. ,  pars.  25  and  26. 


28  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

Rules  for  vowel-quantity  :  — 

1.  The  following  vowels  are  always  short  : 

(1)  Vowels  (nasal  and  oral)  that  are  the  last  pronounced 
element  in  a  word  (except  in  exclamations)  :  fini,  6t6,  fran- 
9ai5,  papa,  lilas^  gigo/,  ^ibou,  dedans,  lapin,  aliens,  qwelqw'un. 

(2)  All  unstressed  vowels  :  dictionnaire,  maUeureuse^ 
g^n^rallt^^  universel,  acad^mie.  (The  final  syllable  is  tO 
be  considered  the  stressed  element;  see  pp.  6  and  7.) 

Note.  —  "It  may  be  said  even  that  a  French  vowel  is  short  unless 
it  bears  the  main  accent  not  only  of  the  word,  but  also  of  the  whole 
phrase  in  which  it  occurs :  thus  the  8  of  i%te  is  long  in  troubler  la  f  §te, 
short  in  la  fSte  de  Dieu.  Hence  the  quantity  of  a  vowel  in  the  ac- 
cented syllable  of  a  word  often  depends  on  the  position  of  that  word  in 
the  sentence."  i 

(3)  Vowels  followed  by  a  double  consonant :  batte,  tette, 
bonne,  caune,  tousse^  butte. 

2.  The  following  vowels  are  always  long  when  in 

THE  last  pronounced   (i.e.,    THE   STRESSED)   SYLLABLE  : 

(1)  Any  vowel  before  j,  v,  z,  3  (see  pp.  32,  42,  43,  44): 
fille,  sidge,  sdve,  travail,  6veil,  chose,  case. 

(2)  Any  vowel  before  r  when  this  consonant  is  the  last 
pronounced  element  in  a  word  :  par^,  p6re,  port,  dirent, 
purent,  beurre.      (But  parte,  perte,  porte.) 

(3)  a,  o,  <f>^  and  the  four  nasal  vowels,  when  followed 

by  pronounced  consonants  :  psLte,  tome,  creuse,  tante,  f  einte, 
Aumbl(e),  longwe.  (But  note  the  short  finals :  cas,  do.s, 
veux,  tan^,  vin,  un,  lon^. ) 

Note.  —  All  of  these  vowels  tend  to  become  long  even  in  an  unac- 
cented syllable  :  Aauteur,  creuser,  longweur,  danser,  pincer. 

(4)  Tonic  vowels  written  with  the  circumflex  accent,  ex- 
cept in  ^te5,  and  in  the  endings  of  the  preterit  tense  :  pate, 
bete,  glte,  chdme. 

1  C.  H.  Grandgent :  op.  cit.,  par.  28. 


THE  VOWEL  SOUNDS  29 

SUPPLEMENTARY  VERB-EXERCISES  ON  THE 
VOWEL  SOUNDS 

1 

Je  visite,  tu  visites,  il  visite,  nous  visitons,  vous  visiter, 
Us  visitent. 

Je  finis,  tu  finis,  il  fini^,  nous  finissons,  vous  finisse;^, 
ils  finisse/i^. 


Je  p^netrai,  tu  penetras,  il  p^netra,  nous  pen^tr§,mes, 
vous  penetrates,  ils  penetrere?i^. 

Je  reflechis,  tu  refl^chis,  il  reflechi^,  nous  r^fl^chissons, 
vous  T6R6chisseZf  ils  reflechisseTi^. 

8 

Je  Yets,  tu  vets,  il  vet,  nous  vetons,  vous  vete^,  ils 
vetent. 

Je  laissais,  tu  laissais,  il  laissai^,  nous  laissions,  vous 
laissie«,  ils  laissaiew^. 


Je  Aarasse,  tu  /harasses,  il  Aarasse,  nous  Aarassons,  vous 
ha.T2LSsez,  ils  hSLYSissent. 

Je  balafr(e),  tu  balafr(e)s,  il  balafr(e),  nous  balafrons, 
vous  balafre^,  ils  balafr(e)?i^. 


Je  bl§.me,  tu  blames,  il  blame,  nous  bl^mons,  vous 
hl^mez,  ils  hlsiment. 

Je  p§,lis,  tu  palis,  il  p§,li^,  nous  palissons,  vous  p§,lisses;, 
ils  -p^lissent. 


30  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 


J'Aonore,  tu  honovesj  il  honove,  nous  Aonoron^,  vous 
Aonores,  ils  honOYent. 

J'autorise,  tu  autorises,  il  autorise,  nous  autorisons,  vous 
autorise^,  ils  autorise^i^. 


J'ose,  tu  OSes,  il  ose,  nous  osons,  vous  ose;^,  ils  osent. 
Je  cli6me,  tu  chomes,  il  chome,  nous  chomons,  vous 
ch6me«,  ils  choment. 


Je  boursoufl(e),  tu  boursoufl(e)s,  il  boursoufl(e),  nous 
boursouflons,  vous  boursoufle^,  ils  boiirsoufl(e)7i^. 

Je  touche,  tu  touches,  il  touche,  nous  touchons,  vous 
touches,  ils  touchewt 

y 

Je  fus,  tu  fus,  il  fu^,  nous  fumes,  vous  futes,  ils  furew^. 
J'eUs,  tu  eus,  il  eu^,  nous  eumes,  vous  eutes,  ils  eure^#. 
Je  murmure,  tu  murmures,  il  murmure,  nous  murmurous, 
vous  murmure;^,  ils  murmurew^. 


Je  pleure,  tu  pleures,  il  pleure,  nous  pleurons,  vous 
pleures,  ils  pleure/i^. 

Je  meure,  tu  meures,  il  meure.  Je  veuille,  tu  veuilles, 
il  veuille. 

<^ 
Je  veucc,  tu  veucc,  il  veu^.    Je  peucc,  tu  peua?,  il  peu^. 
Je  creuse,   tu  creuses,  il  creuse,  nous  creusons,  vous 


creuse^,  ils  cvevLsent. 


THE  VOWEL  SOUNDS  31 


J'ensevelis,  tu  ensevelis,  il  enseveli^^,  nous  ensevelissons, 
vous  ensevelisse^,  ils  eusevelissent. 

Je  redeviens,  tu  redeviens,  il  ledevien^,  nous  redeve- 
nons,  vous  redevenes,  ils  redevienne?i^. 


J^entendsj  tu  entends,  il  entenc?,  nous  entendons,  vous 
entende^,  ils  entende/i^. 

J'enfante,  tu  enfantes,  il  enfante,  nous  enfantons,  vous 
enfante^,  ils  enismtent. 


Je  Grains,  tu  crains,  il  crainf.    Je  tiens,  tu  tiens,  il  tien#. 
Je  maintiens,  tu  maintiens,  il  maintien^,  nous  mainte- 
nons,  vous  maintenes;,  ils  maintiennew^. 


Je  comj!9te,  tu  comptes,  il  com/>te,  nous  comptons,  vous 
coin/?te«,  ils  comptent. 

Je  plonge,  tu  plonges,  il  plonge,  nous  plongeons,  vous 
plonge^,  ils  plongew^. 


J'emprunte,  tu  empruntes,  il  emprunte,  nous  emprun- 
tons,  vous  emprunte^,  ils  empruntew^. 


PAUT  II 

THE   SEMIVOWELS,    j,  w,  ^ 

When  one  of  the  vowels  i,  o,  u,  y,  or  the  group  ou  imme- 
diately precedes  another  vowel,  its  quality  is  slightly 
changed,  and  it  coalesces  into  a  single  syllable  with  the 
following  vowel :  ^  it  is  then  called  a  semivowel.  The 
articulation  of  semivowels  is  less  strenuous  than  that  of 
vowels,  and  the  position  of  the  organs  of  speech  is  main- 
tained but  an  instant.  Give  each  semivowel  a  very  short 
pronunciation. 

Note  1.  —  Semivowels  exist  in  English  :  the  i  of  "question"  and 
of  "senior,"  for  instance,  is  more  like  the  y  of  "you  "  than  the  full 
vocalic  i  of  "machine." 

Note  2.  — In  all  French  diphthongs  (except  vowel  +  j)  it  is  the  second 
part  that  bears  the  stress  :  such  are  called  "ascending  diphthongs." 

1.  j  (pronounced  like  the  y  of  "you  "  or  the  i  of  "senior  ") 
is  represented  in  French  by  :  ^  — 

(1)  i  :  diaman;,  pieua:. 

Note.  —  After  U,  br,  gr,  pr,  ir,  w,  etc. ,  ^  has  its  full  vowel  quality 
even  before  another  vowel,  since  it  is  needed  to  support  the  group  of 
consonants :  fabliau,  pries;,  q?<atri6me,  f^vrier. 

(2)  ^  between  two  vowels  (except  when  the  second  is 
o)  :  faience,  aieul,  baionnette.  (Compare  ouiie  and  inouie,  in 
which  I  =  the  vowel  i.) 

(3)  y  before  vowels  :  yenx,  yoie. 

1  That  is  to  say,  in  conversation.  In  poetry  and  in  formal  speech 
these  diphthongs  count  as  two  syllables  (for  instance,  the  terminations 
-tion,  -sion,  -ua,  and  -twns). 

2  These  letters  represent  semivowels  only  when  he/ore  another  vowel : 
bear  this  fact  in  mind,  also,  for  "w  and  y. 


THE  SEMIVOWELS.  33 

Note.  —  The  letter  y  between  vowels  is  generally  equivalent  to  i-\-i: 
thus  payer  is  pronounced  "pai-ie"  (=  peje),  moyen  =  "  moi-ien," 
and  foyer  =  "foi-ie."  Exceptions  are  Bayonne  (=  bajon),  bayon- 
nette  (or  baionnettg),  fayence  (or  faience),  La  Fayette,  Mayence,  May- 
onnaise ;  here  2/  is  a  simple  j.     In  pays  and  its  derivatives  ?/  =  ^  +  i. 

(4)  ill  or  il  (explained  under  **  I  mouilUe"  page  39)  :  bataillon 
(=  batajo),  mouiller.  The  semivowel  ill  or  il  is  the  only  one  that  may 
follow  a  vowel:  thus  the  group  ouille  (e.  g.,  grenouille)  should  be 
pronounced  uj  and  not  wi. 

Exercise,  i/ier,  fier,^  fier,  entier,  entiere,  lier,  rien, 
bieii,  chien,  miette,  aieul,  baionnette,  yeuic,  yachty  yole, 
trar^arilj  bataille,  f  euille. 


2.  w,  which  sounds  like  a  light  u  (ow),  or  a  rounded 
English  w  (as  in  "  won  "),  is  represented  in  French  by  :  — 

(1)  ou:  oui,  jouer.^ 

(2)  0  before  i  :  moi,  coin. 

(3)  u  after  g  or  q  and  before  a  in  such  foreign  or  learned  words 
as  lineal,  gpiano,  quadragesimal,  etc. 

(4)  w  and  wh  in  English  words,  — tramway,  w^ist,  wMskey,  —  and 
in  wallon. 

Exercise.  Loin,  joindr(e),  coin,  mois,  moi,  oui,  jouai, 
joueur,  louer,  loueur,  Louis,  louange,  lingual,  equation,    -^"^-^^^ 

aquarelle.  '"  ^    i>^ 

\f^   ^ 

3.  q  (written  only  u  :  hvAie,  lui,  juin,  puer)  is  a  light  y. 
It  is  a  difficult  sound.  Begin  by  pronouncing  the  semi- 
vowel and  the  vowel  slowly,  giving  equal  emphasis  to  each  : 
learn  later  to  give  the  q  a  light  pronunciation,  holding  the 
mouth  in  position  (lips  round  :  tongue  flat  with  back  raised 
as  for  i)  but  an  instant,  and  then  passing  to  the  vowel 

1  In  verse  fi-e,  not  fje. 

2  Pronounced  jwe,  not  jn-e,  except  in  verse. 

3 


34  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

succeeding.     By  all  means  avoid  turning  puis  into  "poui," 
Bossue^  into  "  Boss  way,"  etc. 

Exercise.  Euy,  buisson,  bui^,  puis,  frui^,  puise,  puis- 
sant, lui  (compare  Louis),  mue^,  Bossuez^,  puer,  nuee, 
nuage,  nuire,  nui^,  nuisibl(e),  suer,  Auer,  lueur  (compare 
loueur),  sueur,  tueur,  suite,  ruine,  tuile,  cuir,  cuivr(e), 
cuistr(e),  cuisine,  cuisse,  Auile,  fuir,  depuis. 

Note  1.  —  The  pronunciation  of  qu  is  not  always  easy  to  determine. 
In  every  older  word  it  is  safe  to  pronounce  it  k,  u  being  wholly  silent. 
But  in  the  newer  and  more  learned  words  brought  into  French  after 
1650,  or  thereabout,  it  always  has  the  value  of  kw  or  kq.  In  such 
words  it  is  pronounced  (1)  kw  before  a  (aquarelle,  adequa^;,  equateur, 
Equation,  quadragesimal,  quadrupeds,  quadruple/-,  quartz,  squak, 
square,  and  in  the  second  syllable  of  compounds  of  quinqua-) ;  while 
(2)  before  e  and  i  it  has  the  value  of  kq,  in  most  compounds  of 
iqui-  (but  "Diet,  phon  "  prefers  k  in  all  except  Equitation),  in  quin- 
quag^sime  (i.  e.,  kqek-wa-),  questeur,  questure,  Quirinal,  quietude, 
quietisme,  qui6tiste,  ubiquity,  obliquity,  deliquescence.  Custom  is  not 
fixed  for  many  of  these  "learned"  words  recently  taken  into  the  lan- 
guage from  the  classics :  Rousselot,  in  investigating  the  question,  found 
that  nine  educated  persons  pronounced  qwasimodo  with  k,  and  one  with 
k"w  ;  while  for  quadrature  ninety  per  cent  favored  k"w. 

Note  2.  —  Gu  presents  the  same  confusion  and  follows  almost  the 
same  principles  as  qu.  Gua  is  always  pronounced  g-wa^  (Guade- 
loupe, guano,  lingual) ;  before  e  and  i,  gu  is  simply  hard  g  in  the  older 
French  Avords  (guerre,  guide,  gwSpe),  but  it  has  the  value  of  gq  before 
e  and  i  in  some  —  mostly  learned — words  (consanguinity,  aiguiser, 
inextinguibl(e).  Rousselot  found  that  seven  persons  pronounced  the 
gu  of  aiguille  as  gq  and  three  as  g ;  eight  said  gi:z,  two  gqi:z 
(=  Gidse).  When  -gue  has  the  trema  {-gue\  g  and  u  are  separate 
sounds  :  —  compare  aigue  (egy)  with  lon^ue  (15:g). 

Note  3.  —  Since  y  between  vowels  =  i  -\-  i,  be  sure  to  give  to  uy 
before  a  vowel  the  value  of  ui  +  i,  and  not  simply  ui :  appuyer  = 
apqije,  and  not  apqie. 

1  Verbs  in  -guer  and  -qicer  retain  an  unnecessary  u  before  the  a  of 
terminations :  in  these  cases  gua  =  ga,  and  qua  =  ka  ;  conjugwan^, 
iudiq^an^. 


PART  III 

THE   CONSONANTS 

General  Principles.  (Read  again  the  "  General  Remarks 
on  the  Characteristics  of  French.")  All  consonants  should 
be  forcibly  articulated,  especially  those  that  are  final  in 
pronunciation.  The  mouth  should  never  be  left  closed 
after  a  pronounced  final  consonant ;  it  should  assume  the 
position  of  a.  Final  /,  /,  and  r  are  usually  pronounced 
(also  frequently  final  c  and  q)  :  other  final  consonants  are 
generally  silent.  When  a  consonant  is  followed  by  another 
sound,  the  tongue  and  the  lips  should,  even  while  the  con- 
sonant is  being  pronounced,  prepare  for  the  sound  that  is 
to  follow. 

]S"early  every  French  consonant  is  more  or  less  unlike  its  English 
counterpart,  but  some  of  the  differences  arc  too  slight  to  be  more 
than  suggested  to  the  beginner.  Others  are  essential,  even  to  an 
approximately  good  pronunciation.  We  shall  group  the  consonants 
according  to  physiological  principles,  but  this  classification  need  not  be 
emphasized  by  the  beginner. 


I.    THE   LIQUIDS,     r,  1. 

1.  r  (represented  by  the  letter  r  alone)  is  like  nothing  in 
English.  The  tongue  should  be  well  forward  in  the  mouth, 
and  the  sound  lightly  trilled  at  its  tip.  The  French  r  is, 
perhaps,  most  nearly  approached  in  English  by  the  some- 
what affected  speech  of  the  actor  or  public  speaker  who, 
at  the  beginning  of  Ms  syllables^  "rolls  his  r's."  Those 
who  have  difficulty  in  pronouncing  this  trill  may  be  helped 
by  practising,  rapidly  and  repeatedly,  the  groups  "  kda  " 
"bda,"  "gda,"  etc.,  which  will  approach  "kra,"  "bra," and 


36  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

"  gra."  ^  "  The  sound  may  be  advantageously  practised  at 
first  in  combinations  with  c?,  e.g.,  *dry,'  'drip,'  'drop,' 
*drum'  (as  in  Scotch  or  Irish  dialect);"^  next  it  should 
be  tried  when  it  falls  between  vowels,  as  in  serai,  aride, 
etc. ;  later  in  more  difficult  combinations.  Difficult  words 
like  arbr(e)  and  meurtr(e)  are  excellent  exercises  :  they 
should  be  practised  slowly  and  carefully,  as  if  spelled 
"  a-rre-be-rre  "  and  "  meu-rre-te-rre."  Two  faults  charac- 
terize the  pronunciation  of  French  r  by  English-speaking 
people :  (1)  Western  Americans  (all  Americans,  in  fact,  that 
pronounce  r  at  all)  turn  the  tip  of  the  tongue  back  near 
the  roof  of  the  mouth,  and  thus  produce  a  sound  never 
heard  in  French.  (2)  For  the  American  Southerner,  the 
New  Englander,  and  the  Englishman,  r  at  the  end  of  a 
syllable  (that  is  to  say,  unless  it  is  directly  followed  by  a 
vowel)  has  no  existence :  for  them  "  father  "  is  identical 
with  "  farther,"  "  morn  "  rhymes  with  "  dawn,"  and  "  parse  " 
with  "pass."  Either  of  these  defects  is  fatal :  the  letter  r, 
wherever  it  is  to  he  sounded  in  French,  should  receive  a  care- 
fully trilled  pronunciation,  with  the  tongue  well  forward. 
Final  r  will  need  especial  attention  :  in  words  like  pour, 
and  venir,  it  tends  to  lose  its  quality  and  generate  an 
extra  syllable;  thus  "pou-ah,"  and  "ve-nee-ah,"  or  (for 
the  Western  American)  "pou-err,"  and  "  ve-nee-err." 
Br  =  T  prolonged. 

Note  1.  — The  *'  uvular  r,"  that  seems  to  be  gaining  ground  over 
the  trilled  r,  especially  in  the  cities,  is  even  more  difficult  for  foreigners. 
The  tongue  is  flat  in  the  mouth  with  the  point  against  the  teeth  ;  the 
soft  palate  comes  forward  and  vibrates.  Sometimes  it  is  not  far  from 
the  c^  of  "  acht,"  (German),  but  not  so  harsh.  Practise  this  German 
sound  in  groups  like  "cAa,"  "cy^o,"  '*c^^,"  trying  to  make  it  less  and 
less  guttural,  and  more  vibratory.  As  but  few  foreigners  ever  succeed 
in  learning  this  sound,  preference  has  been  given  to  the  trilled  r. 

1  Supplement  this  exercise  by  rapid  repetition  of  "dededede," 
**  dadadada,"  etc. 

2  Fraser  and  Squair:  "  French  Grammar  "  (D.  C.  Heath  and  Co., 
1902),  p.  9. 


THE  CONSONANTS  37 

Note  2.  —  At  the  end  of  a  word,  the  group  cons,  -f  re  (or  le)  should 
not  be  pronounced  as  adistinct  syllable,  but  the  r  (or  /)  should  receive 
only  a  light  whispered  pronunciation :  centr(e),  perdr(e),  acr(e),  aigr(e), 
peupl(e),  tabl(e),  boucl(e),  aigl(e).  {Compare  the  English  "center" 
and  "  table  ").  In  familiar  speech  this  sort  of  -re  and  -le  often  disappear 
altogether. 

"When  r  precedes  a  final  consonant,  that  consonant  is 
always  silent :  cierc,  for^.  Bare?.  B  is  silent  in  final  -er  in 
words  of  more  than  one  syllable  :  aimer,  offlcier,  grenadier 
(compare  cher,  fier,  and  other  monosyllables)  ;  in  voiontieri-, 
monsieur,  and  messieurs.  But  final  r  is  sounded  after  e  in 
amer,  cuiller,  cancer,  Aiver,  enfer,  pater,  Jupiter. 

Exercises  •}  —  (1)  Dra  *,  dri  *,  dro  *,  drou  *,  dru,  dr^  *, 
drai  *,  dry,^  drip,^  drop,^  drum.^ 

(2)  Serai,  sera^,  sera,  serons,  sere^;,  seron^,  aurai,  aura^, 
aura,  auron^,  aure^;,  auron^,  aride,  parer,  fera,  ^arico^^,  lir^. 

(3)  arbr(e),  meurtr(e),  rustr(e),  pr^tr(e),  Chartr(e)s 
(see  suggestion  given  above). 

(4)  arri^r^,  barbare,  Bernard?,  brancarc?,  brocarc?,  cart^, 
Ferrari,  garnir,  meurtr(e),  raidir,  rajeunir,  rapporteur,  rar^, 
raretd,  rar^fier,  regarc?,  rendr(e),  rempar^,  remarqt^e,  rev^nir, 
rire,  ronron,  rural :  donner,  aller,  officier,  ^allebardier, 
Nizier,  manger. 

Bire,^  rdel,  rein^,  rapids ; 
ras,  rognon,  rdle,  rou^ ; 
ru^,  peureu^,  terreur,  rej^er ; 
ramp^,  BAin,  rone?,  brun ; 
rien,  roud,  mine. 

1  There  is  no  need  of  heavy  type  to  bring  out  a  sound  spelled 
as  simply  as  r. 

2  English  words. 

^  Beginning  at  this  point  the  exercise  consists  of  words  containing 
r  followed  by  each  of  the  16  vowels  arranged  in  their  four  series,  and 
then  by  the  3  semivowels.  Similar  exercises  will  be  given  on  each 
consonant,  whenever  possible. 


38  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

2.  1  (represented  by  /  alone)  is  quite  different  from  I  in 
English. 

Physiology.  The  tongue  is  pressed  hard  against  the 
roots  of  the  upper  teeth,  —  as  for  d,  —  and  narrowed  so 
that  the  voice  escapes  at  the  sides.  Prepare  the  tongue 
for  d,  and  then  pronounce  /  with  just  a  suggestion  of  d  in 
it.  Those  accustomed  to  the  English  I  fail  to  narrow  the 
tongue  sufficiently,  turn  its  tip  back  in  the  mouth,  and 
articulate  weakly.  Sometimes  the  English  I  becomes  (in 
such  words  as  *'tell,"  "Italian")  a  hollow  vocalic  sound 
that  is  quite  un-French  (compare  tei  and  itaiien).  To 
guard  against  these  defects,  be  sure  that  the  tongue  is  well 
forward,  that  it  is  flattened  as  much  as  possible  against  the 
roof  of  the  mouth,  and  that  the  articulation  is  vigorous. 

Final  /  is  generally  sounded,  except  after  i  (see  "/ 
mouillee"  page  39). 

L  is  silent  in  Bxdx,  bari^,  BeZfor^,  cheni^,  coutiZ,  cuZ,  fiZs,  fourniZ, 
f usiZ,  gentiZ  (unless  linked,  when  it  =  j ),  nombriZ,  outiZ,  persiZ,  pouZs, 
souZ,  sourciZ ;  and  in  the  endings  -auld  and  -ault. 

Note  1.  —  Always  prepare  the  lips  for  the  following 
vowel  when  pronouncing  1. 

Note  2.  —  Do  not  change  final  -le  into  the  -el  of  cognate 
English  words  (e. g.,  compare  tabi(e)  and  "table"). 

Note  3.  —  For  final  le,  see  page  37,  note  2. 

Exercise  :  —  Fatal,  miel,  bol,  alleluia,  balancelk,  cellule, 
collateral,  colonel,  filial,  foUicuk,  loyal,  local,  volatile :  fi/s, 
pou/5,  Be/for^,  Perrau/^. 

Li^,  l^ger,  lai#,  la ; 
las,  loge,  I'eau,  louche ; 
lu,  gouleuiz:,  leur,  le  ; 
Tan,  lin,  lon^,  I'un ; 
Her,  loueur,  lueur. 


THE  CONSONANTS  39 

Li  mouili6e  is  represented  in  French  by  II  (after  i)  ;  by 
il  and  ill  after  any  other  vowel  (but  not  when  i  and  I  are 
in  different  syllables)  :  fille,  orteil,  oreille,  bail,  paille.    It 

has  no  resemblance  to  l,  but  is  exactly  equivalent  to  the 
semi-vowel  j.      (For  ail,  aill,  eil,  eill  see  page  12,  note  2.) 

Note.  —  Observe  the  difference  between  the  letter  2/  (=  ^  +  i)  and  I 
TTwuilUe  (=  j  alone):  thus  payer  ="  pai-ie,"  (peje),  while  paille 
=  pa:j,  not  pe  :j.  (But  cuiller  and  juille^  are  sometimes  pronounced 
kqij8:r,  and3qije). 

II  and  ill  are  not  pronounced  j,  but  have  their  regular 
sound  of  i  +  1,  as  follows:  — 

(1)  Initial  ill :  illegal,  illusion. 

(2)  III  in  certain  isolated  words  of  which  the  most  im- 
portant are  :  codicille,  millg,  myrtille,  pupille,  tranqwille, 
vaudeville,  ville,  village,  Achille,  Lille,  distiller,  instiller, 
osciller,  billion,  millier,  inib6cillit6,  pusillanime. 

(3)  //,  in  il,  and  generally,  after  a  consonant :  cii,  fii, 
mil  (  =  "  1000  "),  vil,  avril,  babil,  p6ril;  except  the  following, 
which  have  **  I  mouillee  "  :  gresil,  mil  ("  millet "),  gentil  (when  linked); 
and  except  also  those  with  silent  1 :  already  given  on  page  38. 

Exercise  on  l  mouillee  :  Fille,  ail,  batailk,  b^tail,  billed, 
bouteille,  brouillar^,  cailk,  cercueil,  chenille,  cheville,  deuil, 
feuilk,  fauteuil,  oeil,  orteil,  oreilk,  soleil,  Versailles. 

Note.  —  The  group  0 1  Z  =  w  a  I,  with  I  fully  pronounced  :  poll, 
toile,  voile. 

II.     THE   SPIRANTS 

All  vowels  are  **  voiced  "  ;  that  is  to  say,  the  larynx  vibrates  for  their 
formation.  This  vibration  can  be  felt  at  the  Adam's  apple,  on  the  top 
of  the  head,  or  on  the  chest.  Consonants  are  sometimes  "voiced," 
sometimes  "voiceless":  this  fact  is  all  that  distinguishes  the  English 
"zone,"  for  instance,  from  "sown,"  or  "vine"  from  "fine."  It  is 
not  easy  to  frame  a  rule  for  "voicing"  a  consonant ;  try  vibrating  the 
larynx  vigorously,  as  for  9  with  the  mouth  in  position  for  /,  s,  p,  t ', 
this  should  give  the  corresponding  "  voiced  consonants  "  v,  z,  b,  d.  All 
voiced  consonants  are  mild  in  intensity  ;  the  voiceless  are  sharp.  In 
French  the  voiced  consonants  resound  longer  than  in  English :  moreover 
the  articulation  is  relatively  strong  and  the  expiration  of  breath  weak. 


40  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

A.    YoiCELESs  Spirants. 

1 .  f  (represented  in  French  solely  by  /and  ph)  is  like  /  in 

English,  except  that  the  inner  part  of  the  lower  lip  is  pressed  against 
the  upper  teeth  with  more  energy  and  suddenness,  and  the  upper  lip 
raised  a  little.  As  f  is  voiceless,  there  should  be  no  vibration  of  the 
larynx,  but  a  simple  quick  expiration,  after  the  lip-position  is  taken. 

Final  /  is  regularly  sounded  ;  neuf,  chef,  boeuf,  oeuf . 
Silent  in  cle/,  boeu/s  {pL\  oeu/s  {pl.\  nerfs  (pL),  neuf  (before 
a  noun  beginning  with  a  consonant,  —  neu/  sous),  and  in 
some  phrases  as  boeu/  gras,  cer/"  volan;!,  un  oeuf  frais,  clie/'d'oeuvr(e), 
ner/"  de  boeuf,  Heuf-oMtel. 

Exercise.  Falsifier,  fanfare,  fieffe,  fifr(e),  goufFr(e),  frou- 
frou, souffler,  tr6fl(e). 

Philosophy,  nymphe,  asphod^le,  Ph6dr(e),  Alphons^. 

Boeuf,  chef,  cle/  oeu^^,  nef,  vif,  neuf,  juif. 

Fine,  i6e,  faibl(e),  femme; 

inf^me,  for#,  fau^,  fou ; 

fu#,  feu,  feuille,  fen6tr(e) ; 

enfant,  faim,  fon#,  fun  *  ; 

fier,  foin,  fuir. 

2.  s  has  approximately  the  sound  and  the  tongue-posi- 
tion of  S  in  "  say,"  (tongue  flat,  point  against  lower  teeth ;  upper 
surface  close  to  the  roof  of  mouth  and  upper  teeth).  But  the  tongue 
is  more  forward  than  in  English,  the  lower  jaw  is  advanced,  and  the 
sound  should  be  more  sharply  hissed. 

Represented  in  French  by  :  — 

(1)  Sj  1st  when  initial,  son,  soeur;  2d,  when  final  (if  pro- 
nounced at  all),  ang^ius^  omnibus ;  or  3d,  when  next  to  any 
consonant,  or  to  any  nasal  vowel  (except  in  trans  +  a  vowel, 
e.  g.,  transatlantiqwe),  observer,  tension :  i.  e.,  bi/  S  always, 
except  when  intervocalic, 

(2)  ss :  casser. 

(3)  C  and  sc  before  e,  /,  and  i/ ;  ^  ceci,  ceua:,  merei,  science, 
Bcdne,  ScytAes  (but  canne,  scan  dale,  etc.). 

^  Also  in  caecum  (sometimes  incorrectly  spelled  coecum). 


THE  CONSONANTS  41 

(4)  q  before  a^  O,  and  U  :  perqait,  commen^ons,  re§u. 

(5)  tf  in  the  endings  -tlon,  -tialj  -tiable,  -tiel,  -tien  (in 
proper  names),  -tient,  -tience,  -tieux^  -tieuse^  -tie  (but  not  -tie 
and  -tier)j  and   -tium :   nation,^   initial,   partiel,    patience 

minutiettr,  inertie,  Titien.  But  when  one  of  these  terminations  is 
preceded  by  s  or  x,  the  group  ti  has  the  value  of  tj  ;  qwestion,  mixtion, 
bestial ;  likewise  in  Chretien,  and  in  verb  forms  like  (nous)  portions  '^ 
in  which  analogy  with  the  stem  of  the  infinitive  prevents  -tion  from 
being  pronounced  sjd.  Ti  has  the  sound  of  sj  in  balbutier,  initier 
and  differentier. 

(6)  ic  in  dix  and  six  (when  these  numerals  do  not  precede 
and  modify  a  noun)  ;  in  soixante,  Auxerre,  Bruxelles,  Beatrix, 
Aix  (allowed),  and  Xerxes  (second  x). 

(7)  z  in  Cortez,  Me^z,  Suez,  etc. 

Final  s  is  usually  silent  :  las,  mes,  finis.  It  is  sounded  in 
Assas,  Gil  Bias,  Eeims,  Saint  Gaudens ;  in  foreign  words,  such  as 
angelus,  as,  atlas,  bis,  c/iorus,  omnibus,  patAos,  relaps,  Venus  ;  in 
tous  when  not  just  before  its  noun  ;  in  cens,  es,  fiZs,  laps,  lis,^  Mlaa, 
lorsque,  mais,  mars  (but  silent  in  Cinj^-Mars),  os  {pi.  usually  =  os), 
presque,  vis;  and  sometimes  in  moeurs,  jadis,  ours,  plus  (when  it  = 
davantag(3,  or  "plus"),  sens  (except  in  le  bon  sens  and  sens  commun), 
tandisque,  and  a  few  others.  S  is  silent  in  est  (=  "is  "),  Dugwesclin, 
Estienne,  Yosges,  and  st  optionally  in  (Jesus)  Christ. 

Exercise.  Assassina?^,  assomption,  cassation,  cession, 
cecite,  concession,  Cyr,  dispenser,  gargon,  observer,* 
Persan,  persuader,  diversion,*  social,*  recevoir,  cigale, 
magon,  degu,  perga,  omniscience,*  initial,*  patience,* 
essentiel,*  balbutier,  dix,   Bruxelles,  Me^z. 

Cire,  serie,  scene,  sage; 

sas,  sotte,  seau,  sou ; 

su,  ceucc,  seul,  se; 

cen^,  sain^,  son,  casse  un; 

science,  soie,  suis. 

1  In  these  words  care  must  be  taken  to  avoid  the  "sA"  of  similar 
English  words.     Nation  is  "nass-yon,"  not  "nashion." 

2  Compare  the  noun  la  portion  (=porsjo). 

3  Except  in  speaking  of  coats  of  arms. 

*  Note  how  these  words  differ  from  the  English  cognate  forms. 


42  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

3.  f —  the  voiceless  palatal  spirant  —  is  like  the  sh  in 
"  show,"  though  a  little  more  energetic,  with  the  sides  of 
the  tongue  pressed  harder  against  the  roof  of  the  mouth. 

Articulation  is  like  s,  though  the  tongue  is  higher  and  further  back, 
teeth  more  closed,  and  lips  romided,  but  making  a  large  opening. 

Represented  in  French  hy  :  — 

(1)  ch  before  a  vowel  :  champ,  vache. 

Note.  —  Before  a,  o,  u,  or  a  consonant,  and  sometimes  before  e  and 
i,  ch  has  the  sound  of  k  in  loan  words,  especially  those  of  Greek  origin  : 
such  are :  archang^?,  archetype,  chaos,  choeur,  cholera,  lichen,  orches- 
tr(e),  Achab,  Antiochus,  Bacchus,  Michel-Angg.  Final  ch  =  'k.  in 
Miinicli  and  Offenbach  :  it  is  silent  in  almanack. 

(2)  sh  and  sch  in  foreign  words  :  sheriff,  shako,  fashion, 
schisms,  schiste.  (But  in  scholie,  scholastiqite,  and  a  few  others, 
sch  =  sk.) 

Exercise.  —  Chasse-mouches,  chercher,  chevaucher,  che- 
v§che,  chuchot^men^,  chuchoter,  rech^,  revanche,  riche, 
archiduc,  architects,  archives,  schisme,  schiste. 

Chine,  sheriff,  ch^ne,  cha^ ; 

Chalons,  choquer,  chomer,  chou ; 

ddchu,  f^cheu^,  pecheur,  cheville ; 

chan^,  prochain,  Pichon,  cache  un  ; 

chien,  ^chouer,  chuinter. 

B.    Voiced   Spirants 

1.   V  is  like  the  v  in  "vine,"  but  more  resonant.     It  is 
a  voiced  f  with  a  lax  lip-pressure. 
Represented  in  French  by  :  — 
(l)  V  :  sdve,  voeu. 
(2) /in  liaison  :  ^  neuf  [v]  enfant*. 

(3)  w  in  German  words  :  Wagram,  Brunswick.  Also 
generally  in  wagon. 

1  Liaison,  or  linking,  is  explained  on  page  56. 


THE  CONSONANTS  43 

Exercise.     Raviver,    revolver,   valv^,    verv^,  verveine, 
veuv^,  vivace,  vivan^,  vivemen^,  vivier,  vive,  vivr(e). 
Vie,  Vdnus,  veine,  va ; 
vase,  votr(e),  v6tr(e),  voilte ; 
vu,  veu^,  veuve,  venir ; 
ven^,  vain,  von#,  lave  un ; 
vien#,  ddvou^,  vui.* 


2.   z  has  the  same  articulation  as  s,  but  is  voiced.     It  is 
like  z  in  "zone,"  made  very  resonant. 
Represented  in  French  by  :  — 

(1)  Z  :  z6ro,  Balzac,  dizains.      For  exceptions  see  s  (7),  page  41. 

Note.  —  In  quartz  the  z  becomes  the  voiceless  spirant  s,  through 
contact  with  t. 

(2)  S  between  vowels:  prison,  vase.  But  not  — generally — 
when  the  first  vowel  is  nasal  :  e.  g.,  pension.  ^ 

Note.  —  But  intervocalic  s  retains  the  voiceless  pronunciation  of  s 
in  such  obvious  compounds  as  vraisemblabl(e),  parasol,  monosyllabe. 

(3)  5  next  to  a  voiced  consonant  ^  is  frequently  transformed  by  this 
contact  into  z.  This  applies  always  to  Alssice,  asbest^,  balsamine, 
"DreBie,  Israel,  presbyt^re,  Strasbourgr,  subsister  (5  next  to  b),  and, 
optionally,  to  the  ending  -sme.  S  is  z  also  in  trans-  -f-  a  vowel  (except 
transept,  transir,  and  Transylvanie). 

(4)  ^  between  vowels  in  deuxidme,  sixi^me,  dixi^me, 
sixain.      Also  in  dix-Auit  and  dix-neuf. 

(5)  S  and  X  in  liaison  :  mes[z]enfan^5,  leurs[z]ami.s',  six[z] 
heures. 

Final  z  is  regularly  silent,  except  in  gaz. 
Exercise.     Rose,  saison,  Suzanne,  ecraser,  raser,  ruse, 
oser,  lisibl(e),  amusen 
Asie,  apaise,  zele,  Alsace  ; 
grisatr(e),  desordr(e),  zone,  resoudr(e) ; 

^  S  is  said  to  be  "between  vowels,"  because  the  group  en  fbrms  a 
nasal  vowel. 

2  The  voiced  consonants  are  r,  Z,  v,  z,  j,  m,  n,  b,  d,  g. 


44  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

des  unions,  des  oeu/s,  dix  hemes,  oserai ; 

disan^,  cousin,  maison,  brise  un  ; 

visiere,  zouave,  dix  Auit. 

Note.  —  JT  has  two  sounds  in  addition  to  those  discussed 
under  s  and  z  :  — 

1st,  k  +  s,  its  usual  value  ;  fixe,  Alexandr(e),  excellent, 
index ; 

2d,  g  +  z  (a)  in  initial  e^-  (or  in-ew-)  -\-  vowel :  exercer, 
exempl(e) ;  (6)  in  the  prefix  hex-  :  ^exagone ;  and  (c)  when 
initial  in  most  proper  names  not  Spanish  :  Xavier,  Xerxes. 

When  final  it  is  usually  silent :  ceux,  chevaux,  cheveua:. 
But  it  is  pronounced  (=  k  +  s)  in  index,  prefix,  larynx,  Ajax,  Aix 
(preferred  pronunciation),  Felix ;  and  (=  s)  in  dix  and  six  when  iso- 
lated or  at  the  end  of  a  clause.  When  die  and  six  precede  and  modify 
a  noun  beginning  with  a  consonant,  x  is  silent. 

In  liaison  x  =  Z:    six[z]Aommes. 

Exercises  on  x.  (1)  k  +  s  :  Index,  Ajax,  Alexandr(e),^ 
Aix,  prefix,  Qxqms^  excuser,  fixer,  syntax^,  expliqi^er. 

(2)  g  +  z :  Exempl(e),  Aexametr(e),  Xavier,  exotiq^^, 
exact. 

(3)  s  :  Auxerr^,  Bruxell^^,  soixant^,  j'en  ai  dix,  c'es#  \e 
six. 

(4)  z :  deuxi^m^,  sixi^me,  dixi^m^,  dix  Genres,  deux 
enfan^5. 


3.    3  is  simply  a  voiced  /,  with  the  sound  of  z  in  "  azure," 
or  s  in  "  measure,"  though  somewhat  more  resonant. 
Represented  in  French  by  :  — 

(1)  j  without  exception  :  jaung,  3oindr(e),  je. 
Note.  —  J" never  has  the  sound  found  in  "judge." 

(2)  g  before  ^,  %  or  y  :  gens,  rouge,  gtte,  gymnastiqwe. 
Note.  —  Q  never  has  the  sound  found  in  "George." 

(3)  ge  {e  entirely  silent)  before  a^  o,  and  u :  mangea^ 
mangeons,  gageure. 

J  does  not  appear  as  a  final.     For  final  g  see  later. 


THE  CONSONANTS  45 

Exercise.     G^rgett^,  jujube,  Anjou,  Jules,  jouer,  jour, 
log^,  rong^,  roug^,  serge,  libge,  genou^,  agiter,  large. 
Glte,  j'ai,  j'aime,  jatte  ; 
jaser,  Georges,  jaune,  joujou ;  . 
jurer,  jeu,  jeune,  je  ; 
geii5,  agenda,  jonc,  h  jeun ; 
Gier,  joindr(e),  juin. 


III.    THE  STOP  CONSONANTS,   OR   OCCLUSIVE 


are  so  called  because  the  vocal  canal  is  entirely  closed  to  form  thera. 

A.  The  Voiceless  Stops,  ok  Voiceless  Explosives  (p,  t,  k),  are 
rather  similar  to  their  English  counterparts,  so  a  careful  study  of  them 
is  not  essential ;  and  yet  there  is,  even  in  these  sounds,  an  appreciable 
difference  between  the  two  languages.. 

Physiology.  In  pronouncing  the  English  p,  t,  k,  considerable  air 
is  expelled  1  (giving  the  French  ear  the  impression  of  an  h  after  the 
consonant).  In  French  they  should  be  pronounced  with  great  vigor, 
the  expulsion  of  air  should  be  sudden  and  slight,  and  the  transition  to 
a  following  vowel  should  be  abrupt.  These  three  sounds  are  respec- 
tively quite  like  initial  b,  d,  g,  in  English,  when  the  organs  of  speech 
are  tense,  as  in  excitement.  A  more  scientific  explanation  of  the  differ- 
ence between  the  French  and  the  English  stop  consonants  is  that,  in 
the  former,  the  almost  imperceptible  transitory  sound  between  the  said 
consonant  and  the  sound  that  immediately  follows  it  is  "voiced"  ;  in 
English  it  is  a  mere  voiceless  expiration. 


1.  p.  Keep  in  mind  the  general  physiology  of  the  voiceless  explo- 
sives :  press  the  lips  hard  together :  practise  "  apba  "  {pb  coalescing  into 
a  single  sound  with  one  pressure  of  the  lips),  and  the  combination  gives 
the  French  p.  Prepare  the  lips  and  tongue  for  the  sound  that  is  to 
follow. 

Represented  in  French  by  :  — 

(1)  p :  pdre,  appel. 

(2)  b  when  it  is  next  to  a  voiceless  consonant  and  thus  loses  its 
voiced  quality  ;  obtenir,  absurde. 

1  Practising  before  a  lighted  candle  will  show  this. 


46  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

Final  p  is  silent,  except  in  cep,  and  in  foreign  words  such  as  Gap, 
cap,  croup. 

P  is  also  silent  in  baptSme,  ba^tiser,  baptismal,  com/;te,  exempt (-er), 
prompt,  promptitude,  sculpter,  sculpture,  sept(-ieme) ;  but  is  sounded  in 
newer  Latin  words,  even  those  from  the  same  roots  as  the  above ;  ex- 
emption, septeuual,  etc. 

Exercise.  Apoplexi^,  ^pop^^,  Aippopotame,  palper,  pape, 
pampr(e),  palpitant,  parapet,  parapluie,  papillon,  pompe, 
pip^,  obtien^,  absurde. 

Pie,  p^nibl(e),  pai^,  papa ; 

pas,  pomme,  peau,  pouk ; 

pu,  peu^,  peuve,  peti^ ; 

pan,  pain,  pon#,  coupe  un  ; 

pion,  pois,  puis. 


2.  t.  Keep  in  mind  the  general  character  of  the  voice- 
less explosives.  Point  of  tongue  against  lower  teeth,  ^  its 
upper  surface  ("  blade  ")  pressed  hard  against  upper  teeth 
and  roof  of  mouth ;  keep  the  tongue  forward,  especially  in  tr. 
Practice  "  atda  " ;  the  resulting  compound  sound  td  is  the 
French  t.     Prepare  the  lips  for  the  sound  that  is  to  follow. 

Represented  in  French  by  :  — 

(1)  ^  (except  generally  in  the  group  ti^  for  which  see  s, 
page  41)  :  tete,  traiter,  dot. 

(2)  th  (the  English  th  of  "thin"  and  "this"  has  no 
place  in  French)  :  tA6atr(e),  Sith^e,  Vath.  (Th  is  silent  in 
ASthine  and  iathme.) 

(3)  d  in  liaison  (except  in  noid) :  qMand[t]  11,  second  [t]  acte.  (But 
nord^st). 

Final  t  (likewise  th)  is  regularly  silent.  But  it  is  sounded 
in  sept, 2  Auit,2  dot,  lut,  luth,  Brest,  Christ  {st  optionally  silent  in 

1  In  some  parts  of  France  the  tongue-tip  is  against  the  upper  teeth  : 
this  difference  does  not  appear  to  affect  the  sound. 

2  Except  when  they  precede  and  modify  a  nouu  beginning  with  a 
consonant :  sep^  francs,  hvdt  sous. 


THE  CONSONANTS  47 

J^sus  Christ),  ouest,  rapt,  est  (meaning  "east  ") ;  sounded  in  words  in 
final  d  (except  aspect,  circonspec^,  respect,  succinct) ;  sounded  in  loan 
words,  as  aconit,  deficit,  granit,  preterit,  transit,  zenith,  Japhet,  Lot, 
etc.,  and  some  others.  In  some  cases  usage  is  irregular  in  regard  to 
sounding  the  ^ ;  e.  g.  but,  or  bu^. 

Note.  —  The  t  of  vingr^,  which  is  regularly  silent,  sounds  in  the 
numbers  from  21  to  29  inclusive :  vingrt-cinq,  vin^'t-sept.  But  not  so 
in  81-89  ;  qi^atr(e)-viiifir^cinq. 

Exercise.  Activity,  attentat,  attrister,  contenter,  en- 
Ut6,  latitude,  mixtioD,  t^ter,  taffetas,  testateur,  total,  tout^, 
traiter,  triste,  tuteur. 

Tige,  tAd,  tai^,  ta ; 

ta5,  toUe,  tot  J  tout ; 

tu,  boiteu;27,  lenteur,  te  ; 

tan#,  teint,  ton,  Autun ; 

question,  toi,  tuile. 


3.  k  is  similar  to  k  in  "  kick."  Follow  the  general  principles 
of  the  voiceless  explosives,  and  practice  "akga,"  making  oi  kg  a  single 
sound,  which  is  the  French  k«  Raise  the  back  of  the  tongue,  and  press 
it  hard  against  the  palate :  remove  it  suddenly.  Tongue-tip  against 
lower  incisors.     Prepare  the  lips  for  the  sound  to  follow. 

Represented  in  French  by  :  — 

(1)  c  before  a,  o,  u,  or  a  consonant  (except  h)  ;  also  final  c : 
caisse,  corps,  cure,  action,  lac. 

Note  1.  — c  =  g  in  seconc?  and  derivatives. 

Note  2.  —  cc  has  the  value  of  k  +  s  before  e  and  i  (acchs,  suc- 
cinct, and  of  k  before  a,  o,  u,  or  a  consonant  (accroire,  accorded, 
accuser). 

(2)  qu  (u  regularly  silent  here)  ;  qid,  que,  qwan</. 

(3)  k  in  foreign  words  :  wAiskey,  shako. 

(4)  ch='k.  (instead  of /)  in  many  learned  words.  This  is  always 
true  in  such  words  before  a,  o,  u,  or  a  consonant :  in  newer  words  ch  = 
k  even  before  e  and  i  (see  note  under/,  page  42). 

(5)  gin  liaison  =  k  :  long  (k)  espace,  rang  (k)  elev6,  sang  (k)  Aumain. 
In  ordinary  speech  g  does  not  Jieed  to  be  linked. 

(6)  cc  =  k  in  some  Spanish  words  :  X6res,  Ximenes. 


48  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

Final  C  is  frequently  silent  :   estomac,  tabac,  clerc,  banc. 

Pronounced  in  done  (announcing  a  conclusion),  aq^.^educ,  arc,  avec,  bee, 
bloe,  choe,  echee,  estoc,  muse,  Cognac,  due,  Marc  (optionally),  zinc, 
and  many  other  words. 

Final  q  is  sounded  in  coq  (not  in  coq  d'Inde),  and  in  cinq,  except 
before  noun  beginning  with  a  consonant :  cinq  enf  ante,  c'es^  \e  cinq. 

Exercise.  Acoustiqwe,  cacao,  calqi^er,  cantiqwe,  cari- 
cature, caucase,  caustiqwe,  cocon,  concours,  coucou,  cos- 
inetiq2^e,  chao^,  choeur,  chloride,  Chretien,  archange, 
archetype,  echo,  orchestr(e),  cholera,  choral,  chorege, 
Bacchus,  Chanaan,  Achab,  lichen. 

ftm,  kepi,  q^^'e^^-ce?  car; 

ca5,  comme,  cone,  cou ; 

cure,  qz^eue,  coeur,  qi^e ; 

qi^anc?,  qwinze,  com^^te,  qw'un; 

qwi  est-Qe  ?,  equateur,  equidistant. 

B.  The  Voiced  Stops,  b,  d,  g,  correspond  in  articu- 
lation to  the  voiceless  p,  t,  k,  and  are  essentially  like  5,  6?, 
and  g  in  English,  but  more  resonant.  The  laruyx  begins 
vibrating  before  the  explosion,  which  is  moderate  in  force  :  the  cheeks 
should  be  elastic.  In  practice  precede  these  sounds  by  a  continuous  a. 
Prepare  the  lips  and  tongue,  when  possible,  for  the  sound  that  is  to 
follow. 

1.  b  is  represented  in  French  by  the  letter  h  (except  when 

it  becomes  p  by  assimilation  to  an  adjacent  voiceless  consonant). 

Final  h  is  regularly  silent :  piom&,  coiomS.  It  is  sounded 
in  some  borrowed  words  :  cab,  club,  radoub,  Achab,  Job. 
B  is  silent  in  Dou&s  and  Liefeftvr(e). 

Exercise.  Baba,  babiller,  balbutier,  bambou,  barbare, 
barbe,  barbiche,  barbier,  bdb^,  bibelot,  bombe,  brebi^, 
bon-bon. 

Biche,  b^vu^,  b^che,  battr(e) ; 

b^tir,  bonne,  beau,  bouche ; 

bu,  boeu/5,  boeuf,  ben6^; 

banc,  bain,  bon,  gobbe  un ; 

bi^re,  boi^,  buis. 


THE   CONSONANTS  49 

2.  d  is  represented  in  French  by  d  alone  (which,  how- 
ever, becomes  t  in  liaison).  It  is  regularly  silent  when 
final :  bore?,  granj,  rone?.  But  it  is  pronounced  in  some 
foreign  words  :  Alfred,  David,  ^phod,  Leopold,  sud.  It  is 
silent  in  poi(/s.  Make  it  a  resonant  English  c?,  with  the 
tongue  well  fm-ward  and  its  tip  pressed  against  the  upper 
incisors.     Prepare  the  lips  for  the  sound  to  follow. 

Exercise  :  —  Dada,  d^dain,  dedans,  d^dier,  dddirg,  dddi^, 
d^duire,  descendant,  ddmod^,  diad^me,^  Diderot,  Didon, 
Daude^,  rude,  prude,  plaider,  sud,  Alfred,  David. 

Di^,  dd,  daine,  date; 

damner,  donner,  ddme,  douche; 

du,  deu^r,  deuil,  devenir ; 

den^,  dinde,  don^,  d'un; 

diabl(e),  douane,  duo. 


3.     g  is  represented  in  French  by  :  — 

(1)  g  before  a,  o,  u,  or  a  consonant  (except  n  usually)  : 
gan^,  goming,  aigu,  granrf,  agglomeration. 

Note.  —  The  group  gn  commonly  represents  a  sound  in  which  there 
is  no  trace  of  hard  g  (see  "  w.  mouill^,"  page  52) ;  but,  in  some  bor- 
rowed words  (chiefly  of  Latin  and  Greek  origin),  g  and  n  have  their 
separate  consonantal  values,  as  in  the  English  word  "magnify": 
gnome,  gnostiqwe,  g^nou,  cognition,  diagnostiqwe,  inexpugnabl(e)  mag- 
nificat, magnolier,  physiognomonie,  recognition,  stagnant,  and  a  few 
others. 

(2)  gu  {u  being  regularly  silent  in  this  combination)  be- 
fore e,  ^,  and  y  :  guerre,  guide,  duy, 

(3)  ghi  in  Eng^ten  ;   and  gh  in  Italian  words  :  ghetto. 

(4)  c  in  seconc?  and  its  derivatives. 

Note  1. — In  liaison  g  =  'k.:  but  liaison  of  g  is  uncommon  in 
conversation. 

Note  2.  —  When  gg  precedes  e  or  i,  it  has  the  value  of  g  +  3  :  thus 
snggerer  (=  sygjere) :  so  suggestion. 

1  How  many  syllables  are  there  in  this  word  ? 
4 


50  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

Final  g  is  regularly  silent :  ran^,  lon^ ;  but  it  is  sounded  in 
zig-zag,  grog  (and  other  foreign  or  ononiatopoetic  words).  G  is  silent 
in  ^oigi,  doi(/te,  BignQt  (pronounced  also  sipe)  san^sue,  vin^r^,  le^s 
(=  Is  or  leg),  and  Clu^y. 

Exercise.^  Agr^ga^,  eglogz^,  gangrene,  gargotte,  gar- 
gouille,  gogo,*'^  gog^*et^  Gonzagi^e,  galan^,  gwider,  gonfler, 
gw^p^,  Gwy. 

Gmde,  gai,  gmty  gargon; 

g^ter,  gomme,  gauche,  go^t ; 

guttier,  g«^eu^,  guQxAe,  g?^enille ; 

gan#,  gain,  gone?,  gun*; 

nargmons,  goitr(e),  aiguille  {u  sounds  as  q). 


IV.   THE  NASAL   CONSONANTS  m  n  ji 

M  and  n,  when  they  follow  a  vowel  in  the  same  syllable, 
entirely  lose  their  consonantal  value,  and  simply  help  to 
form  a  "  nasal  vowel."  We  are  here  considering  a  differ- 
ent case,  — m  and  n  when  really  consonants. 

1.  m.  The  letter  mhas  its  consonantal  value  (1)  when 
followed  by  a  vowel  (mdre,  amener),  or  by  any  other  conso- 
nant than  n,  p^  h^  m,  t  (triumvir,  decemvir)  ;  (2)  in  antomnal, 
and  indemn(e)  (with  its  derivatives)  ;  and  (3)  at  the  end  of  foreign 
words  :  Priam,  Siam,  BetA,16em,  Jerusalem,  requiem,  album  (=  albom), 
r^um  (=  rom).  (In  all  other  cases  m  nasalizes  a  preceding  vowel,  and 
disappears  as  a  separate  consonantal  sound. ) 

M  is  silent  in  damner  (with  its  derivatives)  and  in  automne. 

Physiology.  — The  articulation  of  m  is  like  h  and  p,  but  weaker  (lips 
touch,  but  are  not  pressed) ;  and  the  soft  palate  is  kept  down.  Prepare 
the  tongue  for  the  following  vowel.  The  sound  is  like  m  in  "my," 
but  more  resonant  and  vigorous. 

Exercise.  Maman,  mamelon,  mammelle,  malmener,  mar- 
mite,  m^memen^,  mdmoire,  momerie,  monument,  monotonia, 
murmurs,  album,  Siam,  indemnity. 

1  Prepare  the  lips  for  the  sound  that  follows  g. 

2  Be  sure  to  differentiate  these  o's. 


THE  CONSONANTS  51 

Mie,  metier,  mai,  ma ; 
mMe,  molk,  maUiT,  mou ; 
mur,  Meus^,  moeurs,  mener; 
manch^,  main,  mon,  Mehnn ; 
miette,  moi^,  mnet. 


2.     n.  The  letter  n  has  the  value  of  a  consonant :  — 

(1)  Before  any  vowel  (except  in  the  prefix  en,  see  note  p.  23): 
navrer,  iiobl(e),  nude. 

(2)  When  final,  in  some  foreign  words:  Aden,  Eden,  Beethoven, 
amen,  specimen,  abdomen,  pollen  (but  in  examen,  -en  =  8 ). 

N  is  silent  in  final  -ent  of  verbs  (3d  person  plural)  : 
donnent,  aiment,  excellen^ 

Note  1.  —  By  exception  monsieur  =  m9sj0. 

Note  2.  —  Even  in  gn,  n  has  its  consonantal  value  in  some  Greek 
and  Latin  words :  see  note  under  g,  page  49. 

Physiology.  Tongue-position  like  French  t  and  d,  but 
articulation  weaker.  Essentially  like  n  in  "nun,"  but 
more  resonant,  and  tongue  further  forward.  Prepare  the 
lips  for  the  following  vowel. 

Exercise.^  Anonner,  nanine,  ninette,  nomination,  nomi- 
natif,  nonne,  nonobstan^,  nounou. 

Nimes,  Neron,  nette,  nappe ; 

navrer,  notr(e),  n6tr(e),  nous; 

nu,  noeuc^,  neuf ,  neveu ; 

Nantes,  nain,  non,  nun*; 

niece,  noir,  nui^. 
Remark.  —  The  confusion  of  nasal  vowels  with  oral 
vowels  followed  hy  consonantal  m  or  n  is  so  common  that 
an  extra  exercise  is  here  given  to  accustom  the  student  to 
the  distinction.  No  new  rules  are  necessary.  (See  pp.  23 
and  50.) 

1  The  heavy-faced  n  is  here  used  to  distinguish  the  consonant  from 
the  nasal  vowel. 


52  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

Exercise.  An,  kne,  ann^^,  anis,  tan#,  temps,  femm^,  ran^, 
ram^,  paysan,  paysanne,  flamm^,  flambeau,  gens,  gene,  rien, 
reine,  fin,  fin^,  sain,  sain^,  Seine,  instinct,  inutile,  inf^me, 
inertie,  prochaine,  prochain,  semaine,  douzaine,  faim,  gwimpe, 
immortel,  immense,  simple,  don,  donne,  bonne,  bon,  per- 
sonne,  ton,  zone,  son,  sonne,  combl(e),  tome,  omelette,  om- 
brelle,  un,  une,  unitd,  brune,  brun,  jeun,  jeune,  lune,  lundi. 


3.  p.  ("liquid  ?^"  or  "n  mouill^e")  is  represented  in 
French  by  gn,  save  in  certain  words  from  the  classical  lan- 
guages in  which  these  letters  have  their  separate  values 
(see  g  and  n).  It  is  commonly  described  as  being  like  ni 
of  "  union,"  but  it  must  be  remembered  that  it  is  a  single 
sound,  and  not  a  succession  of  two  sounds. 

Physiology.  Tongue-point  behind  lower  incisors :  middle 
of  tongue  broad  and  arched  against  the  roof  of  the  mouth 
and  the  palate.  Keep  the  tongue  in  this  position  and  then 
try  to  pronounce  ni  (as  in  "  union  ")  in  a  single  sound. 

Exercise.  Campagn(e),  Champagn(e),  Charlemagn(e), 
cocagn(e),  compagnon,  Gascogn(e),  Boulogn(e),  vergogn(e), 
^argneu^,  soigneu^,  Allemagn(e),  magnifiq2*e,  magn^sie, 
magnanime,  lign(e),  Eloigner,  soign(e),  r^gn(e),  peign(e), 
dign(e),   bagn(e),  poignar<^,   agneau. 

Magnifiq«^e,  soign^,  r^gnai^,  r^gna,  bourg^^ignote,  agneau, 
gagneur,  gagnan^,  rognon,  E-dgnier,  baignoire.^ 


V.  H  is  always  silent  in  French;  but  in  about  400 
words,  chiefly  of  Greek  or  Germanic  origin,  it  is  called 
"aspirate  h"  (marked  'A  in  some  dictionaries),  ^7^  which 
cases  the  letter  amounts  to  nothing  more  than  a  sign  to  pre- 
vent elision  and  liaison.  Compare  :  I'Aomme  with  le  h^vos, 
I'Aonneur  with  la  h&lr^e,  les(z)^eure5  with  les  Aaches. 

1  These  vowel  and  semi- vowel  series  are  not  complete. 


THE  CONSONANTS  53 

The  commonest  words  with  aspirate  h  are  :  —  Aachs,  Aaie,  ^aillon, 
Aaine,  Aair,  Jmler,  hoXcter,  Aallg,  Aalte,  /tamac,  Aameau,  7«aiiche,  Aanncton, 
banter,  ^arangz^e,  Aarasser,  Aarceler,  Aardi,  k&ieng,  Aargneua;,  Aarico^, 
Aarnais,  Aarpe,  /tarpon,  Aasarc?,  AEte,  /tSter,  ^auber^^,  Aausser,  7iau^, 
^avanc,  ^avr(e),  /tavresac,  hemdr,  Henri,  Aerau^,  Aerisser,  Aeron, 
heios,  h%ti{e),  /leurter,  Aibou,  Aideux,  /derarchic,  Msser,  iTollandc, 
Aomarf/,  Aontg,  hoquet,  horde,  hors,  Aoublon,  Aouille,  hojix,  hue,  Hngo, 
Hvigiienot,  hvdt,^  hurler,  huasaxd,  hutte. 

Fromage  d'iTbllande  and  dix  huit  (with  liaison  of  x)  are  violations 
of  the  above  list.  JETeroine,  h^rdiame,  and  h^roique,  have  not  the  as- 
pirate h  in  spite  of,  *heros. 

Ch,  sch,  ph,  and  th  have  been  discussed.     Bh=-x  ;  wh  =  'W. 


VI.  Double  Consonants.  In  the  older  and  more  common  words 
of  the  language,  two  consecutive  consonants  of  the  same  kind  do  not 
differ  in  phonetic  value  from  a  single  consonant :  aller,  donner,  coiflfer, 
Pommage,  appui,  attention,  might  be  written  "aler,"  "doner,"  "coifer," 
"homage,"  "apui,"  "atention."  But  in  many  newer,  less  popular 
words,  a  double  consonant  represents  a  prolonged  sound.  To  understand 
this  distinction  compare  in  English  "alas"  with  "all  last"  (for  double 
I),  "offer"  with  "off  for,"  or  "coming"  with  "come  meet."  Bb, pp, 
tt,  and  dd  are  rarely,  if  ever,  double  in  pronunciation  in  French. 

Exercise.  {Prolong  the  Double  Consonants) :  Collegwe  (?),  illegal, 
illicit^,  illegitime,  collateral,  collision,  illettre,  illiberal,  illimite,  gram- 
maire  (?),  grammatical,  sommaire,  sommite,  buccal,  inne,  innavigabl(e), 
innovation,  innombrabl(e),  irradiation,  irrationel,  irreflexion,  irrefuta- 
ble), irreconciliabl(e),  irreligion,  irreparabl(e),  irrepressibl(e),  irruption, 
malleabl(e),  pavallaxe,  parallels,  syllabe,  syllogisms,  alla/i-,  alleluia, 
alliteration,  Aorribl(e),  Aorreur,  terribl(e),  terrifier,  terrorisms,  terreur, 
dissociation  (?),  transsuder,  transsubstantiation,  pisciculture,^  piscine,^ 
reddition,  atti(p/e,  mammifere,  immanence,  immateriel,  immense,  imme- 
dia^,  immersion,  immigrer,  imminent,  immobile,  inmiodere,  immodeste, 
immoler,  immoral,  immortal,  immonde,  immeubl(e),  immuabl(e), 
annales,  decennal. 

Note.  —  Words  followed  by  the  question-mark  do  not  contain  the 
prolonged  consonant,  according  to  "Diet.  Phon.,"  but  are  so  classed 
by  other  authorities  or  upon  the  writer's  experience. 

A  Historically  not  a  real  aspirate  A,  but  usually  so  treated  in 
practice. 

2    £■/»  —  aa 


54  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

Supplementary  Exercise  I.  Final  Consonants.  Every 
French  consonant  is  either  vigorously  pronounced  or  al- 
together silent;  English  indistinctness  is  unknown.  The 
student  should,  therefore,  pronounce  with  almost  exagger- 
ated distinctness  those  final  consonants  which  are  to  be 
sounded,  and  leave  the  others  wholly  silent. 

Rule  :  —  "  Final/  I,  and  r,  usually  (also  frequently  final 
c  and  q),  and  any  consonant  followed  by  a  should  be  strongly 
pronounced  :  others  are  generally  silent."  (Modifications 
of  this  rule  have  already  been  given.) 

Exercise.  (The  student  is  expected  to  know  what  final 
consonants  are  silent ;  from  this  point  on  no  silent  letters 
will  be  indicated  in  the  exercises.)  Fer,  aimer,  cher,  fier 
(verb)f  fier  (adj.),  jouer,  fil,  fusil,  mil,  baril,  clef,  nef,  nerf, 
chef,  oeuf,  mis,  mise,  las,  cas,  case,  mars,  mais,  ceux,  cheveux, 
index,  cap,  pape,  drap,  loup,  rampe,  vert,  verte,  ouvert, 
ouverte,  dit,  dite,  tant,  court,  tante,  courte,  droit,  droite, 
doigt,  petit,  petite,  dot,  ouest,  et,  est,  vingt,  atteint,  atteinte, 
lent,  lente,  tabac,  clerc,  banc,  bee,  bloc,  croc,  plomb,  tombe, 
Colomb,  bombe,  cab,  club.  Job,  Alfred,  sud,  nord,  lard,  bord, 
absurde,  laid,  laide,  nid,  aide,  rang,  long,  grog. 


Supplementary  Exercise  II.  Words  Apt  to  he  Badly 
Pronounced.  —  Absurde,  agiter,  agneau,  aieul,  aigue,  Alex- 
andre, Alfred,  AUemagne,  Alsace,  almanach,  Angleterre, 
aotit,  appuyer,  arbre,  arri^re,  Asie,  aspect,  assomption, 
athde,  automne,  Auxerre,  ayant,  ayez,  baionette,  balbutier, 
bapt^me,  baptiser,  bataille,  belle,  Blois,  bloc,  boeuf,  boeufs, 
bord,  Bossuet,  Bruxelles,  buis,  cap,  capitaine.  Chine,  cinq, 
clerc,  coeur,  Colomb,  compagnon,  compte,  compter,  condi- 
tion, coq,  corps,  crois,  croix,  cuiller,  culbute,  curiosity, 
damner,  dans,  David,  de,  d^,  dedans,  dehors,  des  haricots, 
dessous,  dessus,  detail,  diamant,  dignity,  disant,  dompter, 


THE  CONSONANTS  55 

dont,  dos,  dot,  Duguesclin,  Eden,  Clever,  Eloigner,  emmener, 
enfer,_  en  haut,  enivrer,  enlever,  ennui,  ensuite,  entendre, 
essentiel,  est,  est-ce,  est-ce  que,  Estienne,  estomac,  dteint, 
dtendre,  eurent,  Europe,  europden,  eut,  examen,  excellent 
{verb),  exempter,  faience,  faim,  faisons,  femme,  fier 
{"p7vud")i  fier  ("#(?  trust "\  fini,  folle,  fonction,  froid, 
fouille,  futur,  gageure,  gentil,  Georges,  gloire,  grenouille, 
gueule,  gueux,  hair,  hdlas,  hennir,  heureux,  hier,  hiver, 
humble,  ils  haissent,  immense,  inertie,  initial,  inutile, 
isthme,  Jean,  Jeanne,  jeune,  Jules,  la  haine,  le  hdros,  les 
baches,  long,  longue,  lueur,  lui,  lut,  magnifique,  maison, 
manggais,  mangeant,  mars,  mayonnaise,  mille,  minis  tre, 
miniraeux,  ^onsieur,  motion,  moyen,  mur,  murmurer, 
nageoire,  nation,  naviguer,  nord,  notre,  nympbe,  observer, 
obtenir,  oeuf,  oeufs,  ceil,  oeillet,  ommbus,  ouvert,  page, 
paille,  paon,  partiel,  patient,  payer,  pays,  paysan,  paysanne, 
peine,  p^n^trer,  pension,  pensum,  pense  un  peu,  persan,  per- 
suader, philosophe,  plomb,  ployer,  poids,  poignard,  poison, 
poisson,  portion,  positif,  position,  potion,  proie,  prompt,  pro- 
nonciation,  puis,  puise,  pouls,  quatre-vingt-cinq,  quelques- 
uns,  qu'est-ce,  qu'est-ce  que,  qui  est-ce,  Reims,  reine, 
reserve,  resignation,  respeo*,  rien,  rognon,  ronron,  rue, 
mine,  rustre,  Ruy,  sculpter,  sculpture,  second,  sept,  signet, 
signifie,  simple,  soixante,  soleil,  songea,  Straisbourg,  subsister, 
sud,  sueur,  suffisant,  sugg^rer,  syntaxe,  tabac,  table,  telle, 
temps,  terreur,  th^,  theatre,  tient,  tint,  tombeau,  tons,  K 
tout,  toute,  tranquille,  travail,  trente,  tr^s,  trois,  trou,  vert, 
verte,  veille,  veuille,  veut,  vieille,  vieux,  ville,  vlnmes,  vingt, 
vingt-deux,  vingt-cinq,  vingt-six,  vingt-huit,  visiter,  votre, 
X^res,  yacht. 


r^Af^ 


PART  IV 

LIAISON 

Many  of  the  regularly  silent  final  consonants  in  French 
are  sounded  when  they  are  in  close  logical  connection 
with  a  word  following  that  begins  with  a  vowel  or  a  mute 
h  :  this  is  called  liaison^  or  linking.  Compare  vous  and 
vous  (z)  aimez  ;  po^  and  pot  ^  eau ;  mon  (=  mo)  and  mou 
enfant  (=  monafct). 

In  general,  the  present  tendency  (particularly  in  Paris) 
is  to  reduce  the  number  of  liaisons,  especially  in  familiar 
conversation.     Excess  is  the  worst  kind  of  pedantry. 

A.    OBLIGATORY  LIAISONS  i 

1.  Subject  or  Object  Pronouns  with  their  Verbs :  nous  [z] 
almond;  je  vous  [z]  aime  ;  on  [n]  entenc/ ;  allons  [z]  -y  ;  vous 
[z]  en  [n]  aves. 

2.  A  rticles  and  A  djectives  with  a  Noun  Following :  les  [z] 
enf  ants ;  leurs  [z]  ami^  ;  anX  [z]  enfants  ;  charmant  ^omme, 
aiinabl(e)s  [z]  amis.  Also  a  plural  noun  with  an  adjective 
following  ;  jours  [z]  heureux. 

3.  Verb  and  Pronoun  Subject :  part^lle  ? 

4.  Preposition  {except  selon)  with  its  Object :  cheOuz, 
dans  [z]  une  ville. 

1  The  story  runs  that  an  eminent  French  actor  was  once  induced  to 
read  the  same  selection  twice  in  the  presence  of  some  people  interested 
to  observe  the  liaisons  that  he  should  make.  A  comparison  of  the 
records  of  the  two  readings  disclosed  the  fact  that  the  actor's  practice 
in  the  matter  of  linking  was  far  from  uniform.  Authentic  or  not, 
the  story  well  illustrates  the  fact  that  liaison  cannot  be  subjected  to 
clear-cut  rules. 


LIAISON  57 

5.  Adverb  with  the  Word  it  Modifies  :  forFinstruii. 

6.  Common  Phrases :  mot""^  mot ;  petit^;^  peti< ;  de 
plus  [z]  en  plus ;  pot  k  eau ;  pas  [z]  a  pas  ;  temjss  [z]  en 
temps  ;  moins  [z]  en  molus ;  tot  ou  tart/ ;  plus  [z]  ou  moins; 
bon  [n]  k  rien. 

B.     LIAISONS  TO   BE   AVOIDED 

1.  Before  words  beginning  with  aspirate  ^h  :  les  hauteurs. 

2.  Before  huit,  Auitidme  (except  "  18  "  and  "  18th"),  onze, 
onzidme,  ouate,  oui :  e.  g.,  c'esi  le  huit,  quatre-vln^^onze, 
mais  oui. 

3.  After  et,  or  the  w  of  a  nasal  vowel :  Jean  et  Alice, 
un  nom  Anglais. 

4.  The  linking  of  final  silent  consonants  of  singular  nouns 
is  usually  avoided  (except  in  common  expressions,  such  as 
pas  k  pas,  etc.)  :  coujo  impr^vu,  obje^  important,  mo^  alle- 
manj,  esprit  anglais.  P  is  rarely  linked,  except  in  tro;?  and 
beaucoup. 

5.  Avoid  also  linking  the  s  of  the  plural  in  compound 
words  :   arcs-en-ciel,  bees  Auer. 

6.  Words  separated  by  an  obligatory  pause  must  not  be 
linked. 

C.     FINALS  THAT   HAVE   A  PECULIAR  VALUE 
IN   LIAISON 

1.  Final  w  becomes  z  :  dix  [z]  ^ommes. 

"       s         "         z  :  mes  [z]  amis. 

neuf  [v]  Acures. 
grand  [t]  ^omme. 
(when  linked  at  all)  :   sang  [k] 
Aumain. 

2.  In  r  +  consonant^  r  alone  sounds:  vers  une  mon- 
tagn(e)  ;  (except  for^,  rt  of  verbs  before  a  pronoun,  and  rs  of  the  plural : 
fort  aimabl(e),  porMl?  and  des  mers^mmenses). 


(( 

/ 

(( 

V 

(( 

d 

(( 

t 

u 

9 

« 

k 

58  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

3.  Nasal  vowels  generally  retain  their  nasal  quality  and 
carry  over  the  n  (not  the  m)  as  a  consonant :  en  ailan^  =  a 
nalld  ;  bien  aimable(e)  =  bje  nemabl(9). 

5  is,  however,  denasalized  (except  sometimes  in  on,  mon,  ton,  son)  : 
bo  nami,  mo  nam!  (or  m5  nami). 

e  may  be  denasalized:  ancien  ami  (=  asJE  or  asje  nami). 

4.  Final  er,  which  generallj'  =  e,  becomes  er  when  linked ;  thus 
premier,  but  premier  an  (=  pramje  rd). 

5.  In  silent  ct^  c  alone  sounds :  respect  absolu. 


PART  V 

EXERCISES  1 

I.   SENTENCES  ON  EACH   SOUND^ 

(Note.  —  Teachers  are  urged  to  have  their  students 
write  some  or  all  of  the  following  exercises  in  the  pho- 
netic script :  only  thus  will  the  real  relation  of  the  con- 
ventional orthography  to  pronunciation,  and  the  gap 
between  them,  be  understood.) 


1.  Le  ministre  a  fini  h  midi. 

2.  Dites-lui  qu'il  dine  k  six  heures  et  demie. 

3.  Finis  vite  ton  diner,  et  lis  ce  livre. 


1.  J'ai  laiss^  ma  clef  chez  le  ddput^. 

2.  B^r^nice  est  pdn^tr^e  de  Fidde. 

3.  Notre  s^nat  d6g6n6T6  a  c^d^  cette  ann^e. 


1.  Est-il  vrai  qu'elle  aimerait  les  p^ches  1 

2.  La  reine  restait  sur  la  sc^ne  de  ses  d^faites. 

3.  Laisse  les  chaises  dans  la  maison. 

1  By  this  time  the  student  should  be  left  to  his  own  resources  in 
all  matters  of  pronunciation. 

2  A  few  of  these  sentences  are  taken  from  Rousselot,  from  Burguet, 
and  from  Kuhn's  "  Elements  of  Spoken  French  "  ;  such  are  indicated  by 
quotation  marks. 


60  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 


1.  Papa  part,  h  la  fois  malade  et  malheureux. 

2.  Voilk,  madame,  le  malade  qui  a  soif. 

3.  La  salle  de  la  fa(^ade  est  sale. 


1.  La  pglte  n'est  pas  g4t^e. 

2.  lis  ont  fait  la  voie  dans  le  bois  en  trois  mois. 

3.  Votre  4me  sera  condamnde  k  P4ques. 


1.  Le  soldat  met  la  pomme  dans  sa  poche  et  sort. 

2.  Octobre  est  en  automne. 

3.  La  forte  colonne  des  soldats  s'approcbe. 


1.  Vos  beaux  chevaux  rddent  trop. 

2.  C'est  un  dr6le  de  pauvre  qui  fait  I'aumdne  aux  autres. 

3.  Nos  gros  rosiers  sont  arros^s. 


1.  Vous  doutez  du  courage  du  touriste  ] 

2.  La  poule  joue  sous  le  poulain. 

3.  A  Toulouse  et  h  Douvres  les  boulevards  sont  couverts 

de  boue. 


1.  Tu  murmures  contre  I'univers. 

2.  Hugo  a  vu  qu'il  serait  puni  plus  d'une  fois. 

3.  La  vue  de  la  lune  est  lugubre  sur  le  mur  dans  la  rue. 


EXERCISES  61 


<^ 


1.  Deux  heureux  amoureux  jouent  partout  le  m^me  jeu. 

2.  Je  veux  deux  oeufs. 

3.  Jeudi  le  gueux  joyeux  va  au  m§me  lieu. 


1.  Des  voleurs  veulent  leur  causer  des  malheurs. 

2.  L'auteur  de  cette  CBuvre  est  la  soeur  du  docteur. 

3.  La  veuve  pleure  :  elle  meurt  de  la  chaleur. 


1.  Je  ne  te  rejette  pas. 

2.  Revenez  h  ce  que  le  bedeau  redoute. 

3.  Faisons-le  jeter  en  prison. 


1.  II  change  cent  francs  k  la  banque  tout  en  chantant. 

2.  La  France  est  plus  grande  que  FAngleterre  ou  que  la 

Champagne. 

3.  L'enfant  change  son  vetement  en  dansant. 


1.  Le  marin  a  du  pain  et  du  vin  fin  dans  sa  main. 

2.  Vingt-cinq  chemins  m^nent  au  Tonkin. 

3.  Viens  afin  que  ton  voisin  ne  voie  rien. 

0 

1.  Ton  bon  front  est  rond. 

2.  Mon  oncle  est  tombd  pr^s  de  I'Od^on. 

3.  Nous  Savons  qu'ils  ont  un  nom  long. 


62  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

1.  Chacun  a  le  visage  brun. 

2.  Aucun  ne  cherche  un  emprunteur. 

3.  Quelqu'un  h  Mehun  a  du  sens  commun. 

J 

1.  Le  premier  cahier  de  papier  est  sur  le  piano. 

2.  Etudiez  la  pdriode  ou  le  si^cle  de  Moli^re. 

3.  Pierre  et  sa  ni^ce  boivent  la  bi^re  k  leur  mani^re. 


1.  Je  ne  puis  lui  ofFrir  mon  appui  aujourd'hui. 

2.  Depuis  le  huit  la  pluie  tombe  sur  les  tuiles. 

3.  Le  fruit  est  distribu^  gratuit  dans  la  cuisine. 


1.  Un  joueur  se  joint  h  moi  au  bois. 

2.  Oui ;  h  I'ouest  le  roi  a  mis  la  douane. 

3.  La  loi  Fa  fait  fouetter  trois  fois. 


1.  "  Sa  croupe  se  recourbe  en  replis  tortueux." 

2.  "  Je  pars,  j'erre  en  ces  rocs  oti  partout  se  h^risse  . 

3.  Richard  rit  d'un  rire  rural,  barbare. 


L   Philomfele  lit  Aulu-Gelle  litt^ralement  et  loyalement. 

2.  Le  l^gislateur  est  plutdt  l^gal  que  liberal. 

3.  Les  colonels  veulent  des  legions  loyales. 


EXERCISES  63 


1  mouill^e  (=  j) 


1.  Ma  fille  travaille  au  soleil. 

2.  L'oeil  de  la  vieille  nous  accueille. 

3.  line  bataille  de  cailloux  h  Versailles. 


1.  F^lix  fait  du  feu  quand  il  fait  froid. 

2.  La  foule  fuit  avec  Frangois  Faure  au  fond  de  la  for^t. 

3.  Enfin  le  fifre  filial  a  fini  ses  folies. 


1.  "  Ce  sont  six  cent  soixante-six  saucissons." 

2.  "  Sois  soucieux  de  son  succ^s." 

3.  "  Finissons  ce  fascicule  ce  soir." 


1.  "  Avouez  que  vous  vivez  une  vie  vraiment  vide." 

2.  "  Voulez-vous  venir  vivre  avec  moi  h  Vevey  1 " 

3.  "  A  votre  avis  ma  voix  est  comme  couverte  d'une  voile." 


1.  "Z^mire  zdzaie  toujours  en  lisant." 

2.  "Le  gazouillement  des  oiseaux  oisifs  rdsonne  dans  la 

maison  voisine." 

3.  "  Qui  refuse,  muse,"  disait  Louise  de  Guise. 

/ 

1.  "  Je  cherche  un  choix  de  chansons  charmantes." 

2.  Charles  chassera  chaque  mouche  des  champs. 

3.  Labiche  cherche  k  choquer  en  chuchotant. 


64  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

3 

1.  Le  jeune  agent  se  joint  h  Jean. 

2.  Je  juge  que  George  joue  avec  Jeanne. 

3.  "  Vous  jugez  mal  le  g^nie  d'^mile  Augier.' 


P 

1.  Peut-dtre  papa  pent  partir  pour  Paris. 

2.  Paul  prend  son  parapluie  de  papier. 

3.  Le  peuple  prie  le  prince  de  partir  h  propos. 


2 


1.  Ta  tante  te  tutoie  tendrement. 

2.  Tartarin  de  Tarascon  est  attrist^  de  I'attentat. 

3.  "  Le  riz  t^t^  tenta  le  rat ;  le  rat  tent^  t4ta  le  riz." 


1.  Qui  est-ce  qui  croit  que  Carcassone  est  ^crasd  1 

2.  Quatre  coucous  sont  un  choeur  considerable. 

3.  Qui  a  conserve  cette  caricature  de  I'Academie  *? 


L  "La  biche  aux  abois  bondit  dans  le  bois." 

2.  Le  barbare  barbu  babille  comme  une  brebis. 

3.  Le  bon  b^be  a  la  bouche  pleine  de  bouillon. 

d 

L  Dans  dix  secondes  le  dindon  rodera  dedans. 

2.  "Didot  dina,  dit-on,  du  dos  d'un  dodu  dindon." 

3.  Daudet  n'est  pas  le  descendant  de  Diderot. 


EXERCISES  G5 


1.  L'^goiste  est  grand,  gros,  gras,  et  gris. 

2.  "  Regardez  les  regards  aigus  de  mon  angora  aux  aguets. 

3.  "  Guidez  la  gondole  sans  vous  ^garer  dans  le  golfe." 

m 

1.  Ma  mfere  est  morte  d'une  maladie  memorable. 

2.  Le  marmouset  murmure  autour  du  monument. 

3.  Mon  amour  me  m^ne  k  Nimes. 


1.  "  Non,  il  n'est  rien  que  Nanine  n'honore." 

2.  Ne  niez  pas  notre  nationality. 

3.  Une  nue  noire  n'a  pas  de  nuances. 


1.  Charlemagne,  daignez  nous  accompagner. 

2.  Ma  compagne  s'dloigne  pour  I'Allemagne. 

3.  La  ligne  de  Boulogne  en  Gascogne  est  magnifique. 

k  (mute) 

1.  L'homme  s'habille  en  deux  heures. 

2.  L'honneur  nous  harmonise. 

3.  Ton  hostility  (fern.)  est  horrible. 

h  (aspirate) 

1.  Nous  nous  batons  vers  les  hauteurs  du  Havre. 

2.  Le  hdros  d'en    haut  est   hant^   des   hurlements   des 

Hollandais. 

3.  Deux  Huguenots  hardis  sont  harasses  honteusement. 


66  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

II.   SELECTIONS   OF  PROSE   AND  POETRY 
1.  LOUIS  XIV  ET  LE  COURTISAN. 

(A  Letter  by  Mnie.  de  Sevigne.) 

II  faut  que  je  vous  conte  une  petite  historiette,  qui  est 
tr^s  vraie,  et  qui  vous  divertira.  Le  Roi  se  mele  depuis 
peu  de  faire  des  vers ;  MM.  de  Saint- Aignan  et  Dangeau 
lui  apprennent  comment  il  faut  s'y  prendre.  II  fit  I'autre 
jour  un  petit  madrigal,  que  lui-m§me  ne  trouva  pas  trop 
joli.  Un  matin,  il  dit  au  mar^chal  de  Grammont :  "  Mon- 
sieur le  mar^chal,  lisez,  je  vous  prie,  ce  petit  madrigal,  et 
voyez  si  vous  en  avez  jamais  vu  un  si  impertinent :  parce 
qu'on  sait  que  depuis  peu  j'aime  les  vers,  on  m'en  apporte 
de  toutes  les  fagons."  Le  mardchal,  apr^s  avoir  lu,  dit  au 
Roi :  "  Sire,  Votre  Majestd  juge  divinement  bien  de  toutes 
choses  :  il  est  vrai  que  voilk  le  plus  sot  et  le  plus  ridicule 
madrigal  que  j'aie  jamais  lu."  Le  Roi  se  mit  h  rire,  et  lui 
dit :  "  N'est-il  pas  vrai  que  celui  qui  Fa  fait  est  bien  fat  ?  — 
Sire,  il  n'y  a  pas  moyen  de  lui  donner  un  autre  nom.  —  Oh 
bien !  dit  le  Roi,  je  suis  ravi  que  vous  m'en  ayez  parld  si 
bonnement ;  c'est  moi  qui  I'ai  fait.  —  Ah !  Sire,  quelle 
trahison  !  que  Votre  Majesty  me  le  rende ;  je  I'ai  lu  brusque- 
ment.  —  Non,  monsieur  le  mar^chal :  les  premiers  senti- 
ments sont  toujours  les  plus  naturels."  Le  Roi  a  fort  ri 
de  cette  folie,  et  tout  le  monde  trouve  que  voil^  la  plus 
cruelle  petite  chose  que  Ton  puisse  faire  k  un  vieux  cour- 
tisan.  Pour  moi,  qui  aime  toujours  h  faire  des  reflexions, 
je  voudrais  que  le  Roi  en  fit  Ik-dessus,  et  qu'il  jugellt  par 
Ik  combien  il  est  loin  de  connaitre  jamais  la  v^rit^. 


EXERCISES  67 

2.  EXTRACT  FROM  BOSSDET'S  SERMON  ON 
"AMBITION" 

Ce  sont  les  paroles  de  ce  grand  saint  que  j'adresse  encore 
aujourd'hui  au  plus  grand  monarque  du  monde.  Sire, 
soyez  le  dieu  de  vos  peuples,  c'est-k-dire  faites-nous  voir 
Dieu  en  votre  personne  saor^e.  Faites-nous  voir  sa  puis- 
sance, faites-nous  voir  sa  justice,  faites-nous  voir  sa  mis^ri- 
corde.  Ce  grand  Dieu  est  au-dessus  de  tous  les  maux  ;  et 
n^anmoins  il  y  compatit  efc  il  les  soulage.  Ce  grand  Dieu 
n'a  besoin  de  personne ;  et  n^anmoins  il  veut  gagner  tout 
le  monde,  et  il  manage  ses  creatures  avec  une  condescen- 
dance  infinie.  Ce  grand  Dieu  sait  tout,  il  voit  tout,  et 
ndanmoins  il  veut  que  tout  le  monde  lui  parle ;  il  ^coute 
tout,  et  il  a  toujours  Foreille  attentive  aux  plaintes  qu'on 
lui  prdsente,  toujours  pr^t  h  faire  justice.  Voilk  le  modMe 
des  rois  :  tous  les  autres  sont  ddfectueux  et  on  y  voit 
toujours  quelque  tache.  Dieu  seul  doit  §tre  imit^  en  tout, 
autant  que  le  porte  la  faiblesse  humaine.  Nous  b^nissons 
ce  grand  Dieu  de  ce  que  Votre  Majesty  porte  d^j^  sur 
elle-meme  une  si  noble  empreinte  de  lui-m^me  et  nous  le 
prions  humblement  d'accroltre  ses  dons  sans  mesurer  dans 
le  temps  et  dans  I'^ternit^.     Amen.  ^.^  \jL»^,„f>JK 

3.    TRISTESSE  \J 

Th^ophile  Gautier. 

Avril  est  de  retour. 
La  premiere  des  roses, 
De  ses  l^vres  mi-closes, 
Rit  au  premier  beau  jour ; 
La  terre  bienheureuse 
S'ouvre  et  s'dpanouit ; 
Tout  aime,  tout  jouit. 
Hdlas !  j'ai  dans  le  coeur  une  tristesse  affreuse. 


68  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

Les  buveurs  en  gait^, 
Dans  leurs  chansons  vermeilles, 
C^l^brent  sous  les  treilles 
Le  vin  et  la  beauts ; 
La  musique  joyeuse, 
Avec  leur  rire  clair, 
S'^parpille  dans  I'air. 
Hdlas !  j'ai  dans  le  coeur  une  tristesse  aifreuse. 

En  deshabilles  blancs, 
Les  jeunes  demoiselles 
S'en  vont  sous  les  tonnelles 
Au  bras  de  leurs  galants ; 
La  lune  langoureuse 
Argente  leurs  baisers 
Longuement  appuyds. 
Heias  !  j'ai  dans  le  coeur  une  tristesse  afFreuse. 

Moi,  je  n'aime  plus  rien, 
Ni  rhomme  ni  la  femme, 
Ni  mon  corps,  ni  mon  ^me, 
Pas  meme  mon  vieux  chien. 
AUez  dire  qu'on  creuse, 
Sous  le  pale  gazon, 
Une  fosse  sans  nom. 
Heias !  j'ai  dans  le  coeur  une  tristesse  afFreuse. 


:J^ 


4.   HERNANI.    Act  I,  Scene  4. 


y    (T-  Victor  Hugo 

-  ( The  bandit  Hernani  and  King  Carlos  hace  been  discovered  in  the  , 
of  Doha  Sol,  whom  both  love.  The  king's  readi/  wit  saves  the  situation  by 
announcing  that  Hernani  is  one  of  his  suite.  This  monologue  occurs  after 
the  king  has  left.) 

Qui,  de  ta  suite,  6  roi !  de  ta  suite !  —  J'en  suis ! 
Nuit  et  jour,  en  effet,  pas  h  pas,  je  te  suis. 


EXERCISES  69 

Un  poignard  k  la  main,  I'oeil  fix^  sur  ta  trace 

Je  vais.     Ma  race  en  moi  poursuit  en  toi  ta  race. 

Et  puis,  te  voilk  done  mon  rival !  Un  instant 

Entre  aimer  et  hair  je  suis  rest^  flottant, 

Mon  coeur  pour  eUe  et  toi  n'^tait  point  assez  large, 

J'oubliais  en  I'aimant  ta  haine  qui  me  charge  ; 

Mais  puisque  tu  le  veux,  puisque  c'est  toi  qui  viens 

Me  faire  souvenir,  c'est  bon,  je  me  souviens ! 

Mon  amour  fait  pencher  la  balance  incertaine 

Et  tombe  tout  entier  du  c6t^  de  ma  haine. 

Oui,  je  suis  de  ta  suite,  et  c'est  toi  qui  I'as  dit ! 

Va !  jamais  courtisan  de  ton  lever  maudit. 

Jamais  seigneur  baisant  ton  ombre,  ou  majordome 

Ayant  k  te  servir  abjur^  son  coeur  d'homme. 

Jamais  chiens  de  palais  dresses  k  suivre  un  roi 

Ne  seront  sur  tes  pas  plus  assidus  que  moi ! 

Ce  qu'ils  veulent  de  toi,  tons  ces  grands  de  Castille, 

C'est  quelque  titre  creux,  quelque  hochet  qui  brille, 

C'est  quelque  mouton  d'or  qu'on  se  va  pendre  au  cou  ; 

Moi,  pour  vouloir  si  pen  je  ne  suis  pas  si  fou  ! 

Ce  que  je  veux  de  toi,  ce  n'est  point  faveurs  vaines, 

C'est  I'ame  de  ton  corps,  c'est  le  sang  de  tes  veines, 

C'est  tout  ce  qu'un  poignard,  furieux  et  vainqueur. 

En  y  fouillant  longtemps  pent  prendre  au  fond  d'un  coeur. 

Va  devant  1  je  te  suis.     Ma  vengeance  qui  veille 

Avec  moi  toujours  marche  et  me  parle  k  I'oreille. 

Va !  je  suis  Ik,  j'^pie  et  j'^coute,  et  sans  bruit 

Mon  pas  cherche  ton  pas  et  le  presse  et  le  suit. 

Le  jour  tu  ne  pourras,  6  roi,  tourner  la  tete 

Sans  me  voir  immobile  et  sombre  dans  ta  f^te ; 

La  nuit  tu  ne  pourras  tourner  les  yeux,  6  roi. 

Sans  voir  mes  yeux  ardents  luire  derri^re  toi  1 


70  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

5.   LE   VOYAGE  DE  M.  PERRICHON.    Act  III,  Scene  8. 
Labiche  et  Martin 

{Daniel  and  Armand,  rivals  for  the  hand  of  Mile.  Perrichon,  strive  to 
win  the  father's  favor.  The  last  is  elated  over  having,  as  he  supposed,  saved 
Daniel's  life.  At  present  Armand  has  the  vpper  hand,  as  he  has  not  only 
rescued  Perrichon  from  physical  danger,  hut  is  now  saving  him  from  prison.) 

Pebbichok,  Daniel 

Daniel,  a  part  et  descendant.  —  II  est  Evident  que  mes 
actions  baissent.  .  .  .  Sijepouvais.  .  .  .  {B  va  au  canape.) 

Perrichon,  a  part  au  fond.  —  Ce  brave  jeune  homme 
.  .  .  Qa  me  fait  de  la  peine.  .  .  .  AUons  !  II  le  faut !  {Haut.) 
Mon  cher  Daniel  .  .  .  j'ai  une  communication  pdnible  h, 
vous  fairs. 

Daniel,  a  part.  —  Nous  y  voil^ !  {lis  s^asseyent  sur  le 
canape.) 

Perrichon.  —  Vous  m'avez  fait  I'honneur  de  me  demander 
la  main  de  ma  fiUe.  .  .  .  Je  caressais  ce  projet,  mais  les 
circonstances  ...  les  ^v^nements  .  .  .  votre  ami,  M. 
Armand,  m'a  rendu  de  tels  services !  .  .  . 

Daniel.  —  Je  comprends. 

Perrichon.  —  Car  on  a  beau  dire,  il  m'a  sauv^  la  vie, 
cet  homme ! 

Daniel.  —  Eh  bien!  et  le  petit  sapin  auquel  vous  vous 
^tes  cramponn^ ! 

Perrichon.  —  Certainement  .  .  .  le  petit  sapin  .  .  . 
mais  il  ^tait  bien  petit  .  .  .  il  pouvait  casser  .  .  .  et  puis 
je  ne  le  tenais  pas  encore. 

Daniel.  —  Ah ! 

Perrichon.  —  Non  .  .  .  mais  ce  n 'est  pas  tout  .  .  .  dans 
ce  moment,  cet  excellent  jeune  homme  br^le  le  pav^  pour 
me  tirer  des  cachots  .  .  .  Je  lui  devrai  I'honneur  .  .  . 
I'honneur ! 


EXERCISES  71 

Daniel.  —  M.  Perrichon !  le  sentiment  qui  vous  fait  agir 
est  trop  noble  pour  que  je  cherche  h  le  combattre.  .  .  . 

Perrichon.  —  Vrai !  Vous  ne  m'en  voulez  pas  ? 

Daniel.  —  Je  ne  me  souviens  que  de  votre  courage  .  .  . 
de  votre  ddvouement  pour  moi.  .  .  . 

Perrichon,  lui  prenant  la  main.  —  Ah !  Daniel !  {A 
part.)  C'est  dtonnant  comme  j'aime  ce  gar§on-la ! 

Daniel,  se  levant.  —  Aussi,  avant  de  partir  .  .  . 

Perrichon.  —  Hein  ? 

Daniel.  —  Avant  de  vous  quitter  .  .  . 

Perrichon,  se  levant.  —  Comment !  me  quitter  !  vous  % 
Et  pourquoi  ? 

Daniel.  —  Je  ne  puis  continuer  des  visites  qui  seraient 
compromettantes  pour  mademoiselle  votre  fiUe  .  .  .  et 
douloureuses  pour  moi. 

Perrichon.  —  Allons  bien!  Le  seul  homme  que  j'aie 
sauv^ ! 

Daniel.  —  Oh!  mais  votre  image  ne  me  quittera  pas 
.  .  .  j'ai  form^  un  projet  .  .  .  c'est  de  fixer  sur  la  toile, 
comme  elle  Test  ddjk  dans  mon  coeur,  Th^roique  sc^ne  de  la 
mer  de  Glace. 

Perrichon.  —  Un  tableau !  II  veut  me  mettre  dans  un 
tableau ! 

Daniel.  — Je  me  suis  ddjk  adress^  k  un  de  nos  peintres 
les  plus  illustres  .  .  .  un  de  ceux  qui  travaillent  pour  la 
post^ritd !  .  .  . 

Perrichon.  —  La  post^rit^  !  Ah !  Daniel !  {A  part.)  C'est 
extraordinaire  comme  j'aime  ce  gar^on-lk  ! 

Daniel.  — Je  tiens  surtout  h>  la  ressemblance  .  .  . 

Perrichon.  —  Je  crois  bien  !  moi  aussi ! 

Daniel.  —  Mais  il  sera  ndcessaire  que  vous  nous  donniez 
cinq  ou  six  stances  .  .  . 

Perrichon.  —  Comment  done,  mon  ami !  quinze !  vingt ! 
trente!  §a  ne  m'ennuiera  pas  .  .  .  nous  poserons  ensemble ! 


72  PRONUNCIATION  OF  FRENCH 

Daniel,  vivement.  —  Ah !  non  .  .  .  pas  moi ! 

Perrichon.  —  Pourquoi  ? 

Daniel.  —  Parce  que  .  .  .  voici  comment  nous  avons 
congu  le  tableau  .  .  .  on  ne  verra  sur  la  toile  que  le  Mont- 
Blanc.  ... 

Perrichon,  inquiet.  —  Eh  bien,  et  moi  ? 

Daniel.  —  Le  Mont-Blanc  et  vous  ! 

Perrichon.  —  C'est  9a  .  .  .  moi  et  le  Mont-Blanc  .  .  . 
tranquille  et  majestueux !  .  .  .  Ah !  9a,  et  vous,  oti  serez- 
vousl 

Daniel.  —  Dans  le  trou  .  .  .  tout  au  fond  ...  on 
n'apercevra  que  mes  deux  mains  crisp^es  et  suppliantes  .  .  . 

Perrichon.  —  Quel  magnifique  tableau ! 

Daniel.  —  Nous  le  mettrons  au  Musde  .  .  . 

Perrichon.  —  De  Versailles  ? 

Daniel.  —  Non,  de  Paris. 

Perrichon.  —  Ah !  oui  .  .  .  k  I'exposition !  .  .  . 

Daniel.  —  Et  nous  inscrirons  sur  le  livret  cette  notice  .  .  . 

Perrichon.  —  Non  !  pas  de  banque  !  pas  de  reclame ! 
Nous  mettrons  tout  simplement  I'article  de  mon  journal 
..."  On  nous  ^crit  de  Chamouny." 

Daniel.  —  C'est  un  peu  sec. 

Perrichon.  —  Oui  .  .  .  mais  nous  I'arrangerons !  {Avec 
effusion.)  Ah!  Daniel,  mon  ami !  .  .  .  mon  enfant! 

Daniel.  —  Adieu,  monsieur  Perrichon !  .  .  .  nous  ne 
devons  plus  nous  revoir. 

Perrichon.  —  Non !  c'est  impossible !  ce  mariage  .  .  . 
rien  n'est  encore  ddcid^.  .  .  . 

Daniel. — Mais  .  .  . 

Perrichon.  —  Restez !  je  le  veux ! 

Daniel,  a  part.  —  AUons  done ! 


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